Lao authorities close down illegal Golden Triangle wildlife shops.
Government law enforcement officers ordered the closure of the shops and confiscated almost 400 items during surprise raids
at Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Tonpheung district, Bokeo province on July 27. The illegal items, consisting of
bracelets, necklaces, horns, teeth, pendants and bangles, many from endangered species, were taken for identification and
the Chinese shop owners were ordered to no longer sell illegal wildlife items or reproductions of wildlife parts. The two-hour
-long seizure was carried out by the Provincial Wildlife Law Enforcement Network (P-WEN) of Bokeo province and
the Department of Forest Inspection. P-WEN enforcement officers from the Provincial Office of Forest Inspection, police,
army, courts, customs and public prosecution conducted the raids using four teams of seven people each. Many of the seized
items will be sent to the CITES Scientific Authority for identification and certification to determine if they are from
endangered species. The rest will be securely kept by Bokeo’s Provincial Office of Forest Inspection until further notice
from the CITES Scientific Authority.
They were also informed of the recent Prime Minister’s Order on Strengthening Strictness of the Management and Inspection
of Prohibited Wild Fauna and Flora. This Order increases enforcement and penalties against illegal wildlife trade and is a
significant development in Laos’ efforts against this multi-national, multi-million dollar trade that is linked to organised crime.
This area is well known as a hub of illegal wildlife trade and occurs inside the Golden Triangle, where Laos, Myanmar and
Thailand intersect and many markets sell endangered species and their parts such as tigers, elephants, pangolin and bears.
The trade takes place in shops, markets, restaurants and casinos.
ที่มา: เว็บไซต์หนังสือพิมพ์ Vientiane Times, วันที่ 6 กรกฎาคม 2561
08/10/2018