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Governments commit to tackling wildlife crime in major declaration
an article by World Wildlife Fund
The world has never before rallied together to
stop wildlife crime like they did this week in
London. Heads of state, ministers and other high-
level representatives from 46 countries—including
those most heavily impacted by poaching and
illegal trade of wildlife—signed onto an
extraordinary joint declaration.
(c) Martin Harvey / WWF-Canon
click on photo to enlarge
Measures agreed by countries signing the "London
Declaration" include:
* Eradicating the market for illegal wildlife
products
* Strengthening law enforcement efforts and
ensuring that effective legal frameworks and
deterrents are in place
* Promoting sustainable livelihoods through support
for local communities.
The announcement came after two days of
negotiations hosted by the UK government that
included the participation of Their Royal
Highnesses, Princes Charles, William and Harry.
WWF and TRAFFIC were among representatives from
international organizations that have a significant
role to play in tackling this crisis and
implementing the declaration's commitments.
"This degree of high-level attention to illegal
wildlife trade and unanimous call for action is
unprecedented," said Steven Broad, executive
director of TRAFFIC. "Our challenge now is to keep
up the pressure and help translate this attention
into concerted action to put the Declaration's
bold commitments into action."
WWF's global campaign has
played an important role in exposing the
seriousness of wildlife crime as organized
criminal networks undermine the rule of law and
good governance and encourage corruption.
WWF has also been privileged to play an important
role in the shaping of the first-ever US National Strategy for Combating Wildlife
Trafficking, which the White House released
just prior to the London Conference.
[Note: Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN
reporter for this article.]
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DISCUSSION
Question(s) related to this article:
What is the relation between the environment and peace?,
* * * * *
LATEST READER COMMENT:
[quote=mmartin,Nov. 16 2004,22:16][/quote]
| Quote | | Preserve the planet is one of the keys of a culture of peace. |
For sure it is; the question is what is the relation, and for this we can best listen to the wisdom of so many indigenous peoples, that from times immemorial are guardians of the earth. If we are not at peace with our environment, behaving like parasites, how can we even think about a peacefull and non violent culture for our future generations....it is like a contradiction in terms.
So we have to heal this error of thinking and realise that the relation between the environment and peace is one of inextricable boundage.
This is why I want to bring under your attention the Global Campaign: SPEAKING4EARTH that is launched at 9 december 2004 in the Peace palace in The Hague.
Indigenous peoples have a deep spiritual connection to their land, including the sky, the clouds, the rivers, the soil and all living creatures. In the indigenous world, it is said that land is not something you inherit from your ancestors, but rather something you borrow from your children. Speaking4Earth is a project connecting this sense of change in the western relationship with the world with the vision of indigenous peoples that we need to care for the earth for our future generations. Speaking4 earth makes it priority to have the draft declaration on the Collective Rights of Indigenous Peoples addopted by the GA of the UN
reading their website:
For twenty years, Indigenous Peoples and their support organisations have been pressuring the United Nations to adopt a declaration for the protection of the rights of the world’s Indigenous Peoples. It is feared that – due to blocking attempts most notably by the UK and the USA - the UN will now stop this process and leave Indigenous Peoples’ rights unrecognized. . ...more.
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