NEW YORK, 7 March 2015 (NNT) – Thailand’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations joined the Illegal Wildlife Trade dialogue for the World Wildlife Day on 3 March 2015, which called for serious combat of wildlife crime.
Deputy Permanent Representative and Charge d’Affaires of Thailand, Chayapan Bamrungphong, along with the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, and other UN organisations have participated in the second observance of the World Wildlife Day with the theme ‘It’s time to get serious about wildlife crime’.
The Thai Deputy Permanent Representative said at a High-Level Stakeholder Dialogue on Illegal Wildlife Trade held at Central Park, New York City, that many countries are suffering from the adverse economic, social and environmental impacts of wildlife crime. Therefore, all UN member states and organisations must share the responsibilities of combating wildlife crime.
In this occasion, the UN Secretary-General said that the wildlife crime is a threat to our ecosystems and undermines the rule of law as well as national peace and security, while the Secretary-General of CITES John Scalon stated that greed, ignorance, and indifference are traits that are driving this illegal trade, while positive actions are undertaken to address the issues.
On 4 March 2015, the Thai Deputy Permanent Representative presented to the UN General Assembly, the Thai Government’s steps towards illegal ivory trade in Thailand, and the country’s commitment to preserve and protect elephants under the obligations of the CITES and its contribution to resolve this international problem.
Thailand has submitted the revised National Ivory Action Plan (NIAP) to the CITES Secretariat, and has been enacting the laws and regulations to suppress African ivory smuggling by passing the Amended Wild Animals Reservation and Protection Act and the Ivory Act. The government has also recently introduced the new ivory registration system and established the mechanisms to end illegal ivory trade, said the Thai Deputy Permanent Representative.
The observance of the World Wildlife Day in New York has raised the awareness about the scope and severity of wildlife crime through social media campaigns to more than 15 million people around the world.