Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu has created a special task force that will go after groups and individuals involved in wildlife trafficking, an official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said.
Director Theresa Mundita S. Lim of the DENR’s Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) said the creation of the special task force is Cimatu’s response to rampant illegal-wildlife trade that continues to threaten the country’s endangered wildlife species.
There are already two other task forces that deal with environmental crimes, which include animal poaching or hunting of animal for subsistence, and illegal-wildlife trade that aims to profit from wildlife resources, before Cimatu’s current term.
These are the Philippine Operations Group on Ivory and Illegal Wildlife or Task Force Pogi created under former Environment Secretary Ramon J.P. Paje, a composite group of personnel deputized by the DENR’s BMB and officers of law-enforcement agencies like the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation, and the National Anti-Environmental Crime Task Force (NAECTF) created by former Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez. The NAECTF is an interagency body tasked to go after large-scale environmental crimes, which include wildlife trafficking.
At the closing news conference of the 12th Conference of Parties Meeting of the Convention for the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) of Wild Animals on October 28, Lim said under Cimatu’s watch as chief steward of the environment and natural resources, the DENR will continue its awareness campaign, while strengthening wildlife
law enforcement.
DENR Undersecretary for Field Operations (Luzon) Juan Miguel T. Cuna said Cimatu will make the formal announcement as to the name, composition and mission of the task force.
The Philippines has existing legislation that protect Philippine wildlife, including migratory species, including the Wildlife Act, the Caves Act and the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act (Nipas), against illegal- wildlife trade.
Animal poaching is a big problem even in supposedly protected areas under Nipas, as upland dwellers continue to hunt animals for subsistence; and for illegal-wildlife trade, it being a traditional source of income. Animals like snakes, birds, lizards and spiders are sold as pets, and are even exported by unscrupulous traders.
Illegal-wildlife trade also occurs in open seas, with local and foreign fishermen targeting endangered species like sharks and rays, including the butanding and marine turtles.
Sharks and rays are targeted for their meat and internal organs in Western Visayas and Bicol regions. They are traditionally cooked with coconut milk to produce kinunot, a local delicacy.
In Tawi-Tawi Province, host to the Turtle Island Wildlife Sanctuary and the biggest concentration of marine turtles that can be found in Southeast Asia, marine turtle population is on the decline because of hunting for meat, shells and their internal organs. People in communities in Tawi-Tawi also harvest the eggs of marine turtles.
Lim said the DENR continues to conduct awareness campaign about the importance of protecting and conserving the country’s endangered animal species, including migratory birds and marine animals, while strengthening law enforcement, arrest or apprehension of suspected traders, and prosecution.
“We continue to coordinate with the Judiciary to make sure that our campaign does not stop in the apprehension, but to make get conviction by the courts,”
she added.
The Philippines is the only country with special prosecutors and special courts that deal with environmental crimes.
During the international wildlife conference, a total of 34 proposals were approved, providing greater protection for 34 migratory species, including iconic animals like the lion, leopard, giraffe and chimpanzee.
Also called the Bonn Convention, the CMS is an international treaty that promotes the protection and conservation of migratory species, including their habitats.
During the convention, the Philippines, being the host of the meeting, successfully pushed greater protection for two sharks and three bird species.
These are the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), white-spotted wedgefish (Rhynchobatus australiae), Christmas frigatebird (Fregada andrewsi), block noddy (Anous minuitus) and the yellow bunting (Emberiza sulpurata).