By Neo Chai Chin, TODAY | Posted:
30 July 2012 0703 hrs
SINGAPORE: Bears in metal jackets - with metal
catheters draining bile from their gall bladders - stand in tiny
cages with their muscles largely wasted.
Some have had their teeth smashed, or claws cut. Others could be
killed, with their paws cut off or gall bladders taken out
on-the-spot - if that is what the buyer wants.
Animal welfare issues aside, these bear farms - found in countries
such as Laos, Myanmar and China and where thousands of bears are
kept - are also a "real concern" from a conservation standpoint,
given evidence that suggests that some of these bears are caught in
the wild, said wildlife monitoring network Traffic's South-east
Asia Deputy Director Chris Shepherd, who was recently in
town.
The two bear species in South-east Asia - the Asian black bear and
sun bear - are endangered species.
Cross-border trade of bear bile products is prohibited under the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora (CITES), but occurs throughout the region, noted a
bear bile trade report published last year that Dr Shepherd
co-authored.
The bleak picture extends to wildlife trafficking in general: With
growing demand fuelled by rising affluence and the rise of online
trade, and enforcement agencies failing to keep up with smugglers,
trafficking levels are at an all-time high, according to Dr
Shepherd, who is based in Malaysia.
"The situation has never been as severe as it is now," he told
MediaCorp.
"Last year, more rhinos were killed in South Africa to supply
demand in Vietnam than have ever been killed before - it was the
absolute peak last year. This year, it's looking to be
worse."
Last year, 448 rhinos were killed in South Africa. Conservationists
have pointed to demand from Asia, in particular Vietnam. According
to Traffic, Vietnamese made up 24 of the 43 arrests of Asian
nationals for rhino crimes in South Africa this year, reported The
Guardian last Monday.
Dr Shepherd said the aim is not to stop all wildlife trade - but to
"enforce legislation to a point where wildlife is not threatened by
trade and, in some cases, can be used sustainably". Such laws
enacted for the white-tailed deer in North America have resulted in
no detrimental effect on its wild population despite hunting, for
instance.
Traffic investigates trade, provides intelligence reports and
assists authorities in wildlife trafficking enforcement. It has
developed materials such as species identification guides in
various languages for the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network, an
inter-governmental initiative targeting wildlife crime.
Its most recent report, on trade of birds in the Solomon Islands,
analysed 11 years of trade figures and named Singapore as a key
laundering point for tens of thousands of birds caught in the wild
but declared as captive bred.
Dr Shepherd urged the Singapore authorities to "better scrutinise
permits on shipments" of various species. "If they closed the door
here, it would have a knock-on effect globally. Singapore
definitely has the potential and capacity to do that," he
said.
Cases of illegal import, export and trans-shipment of wildlife and
their parts or products have decreased in the last two years,
according to figures from the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority
(AVA).
There were 33 cases in 2010 and 20 cases last year, with eight
cases so far this year.
The possession and sale of illegal wildlife and their parts or
products has decreased from 64 in 2010 to 14 last year. But in the
first half of this year, 16 cases have already been recorded.
Three cases since 2010 have been prosecuted in court, with the rest
given warnings or composition fines, said an AVA
spokesperson.
He added that the AVA conducts regular inspections on shops that
sell wildlife, and checks all shipments from high-risk countries at
ports of entry and exit.
It also investigates CITES infringements based on its own
intelligence and other information sources. The public may also
contact the AVA at 6227 0670 to provide information on illegal
wildlife sales.
"Singapore consumers can play their part by not eating exotic or
illegal meat in restaurants overseas, and not buying medicines and
souvenirs with wildlife parts," said Dr Shepherd.
"They should not keep wildlife as pets and, if they come across
wildlife being illegally sold by dealers, they should resist
"rescuing" the animals by buying them."
