Wildlife smuggling is an ever-growing problem in today’s interconnected world. It has a surprising impact on both people and the environment, and it tends to flourish in the same spaces as other crimes that impact humanity directly.
The Borneo Post recently reported on a worrisome surge in turtle egg smuggling, among other wildlife offenses, that is occurring in Malaysia.
What’s happening?
According to the Borneo Post, in Sarawak alone, tens of thousands of turtle eggs have been seized this year.
“For this year alone, we have seized around 30,000 turtle eggs, slightly higher compared to last year,” said Sarawak Forestry Corporation deputy general manager Japanie Bujang at a press conference, per the Borneo Post.
“Most of the cases we detected were around Serikin, Telok Melano, and other border zones near Indonesia. The majority of the turtle eggs seized were smuggled in from Indonesia into Sarawak. Seven court cases related to turtle egg smuggling have been filed so far this year.”
Why is wildlife trafficking important?
Smuggling animals across borders is obviously bad for the individual creatures involved, which often die in transit and may be kept in miserable conditions when they reach their illegal destinations.
The impact of wildlife trafficking goes beyond the individual, however. At the species level, many of the specimens involved are endangered, and removing them from their native environments impacts the ability of the species as a whole to continue reproducing and recovering.
Zooming out further, destabilizing the population of one species impacts its entire ecosystem. Different species depend on each other for food and shelter, often in complex and subtle ways, and the welfare of one species affects the whole system.
Meanwhile, smuggled animals often escape or are released into new environments, and that can be just as destructive. They can become invasive, thriving so well in a new environment that they overtake native species and damage their populations, spreading like wildfire and destroying ecosystems.
Plus, the same criminal networks that smuggle animals also engage in other criminal activities, such as smuggling drugs. Efforts to curb wildlife trafficking pay off in reductions of other crimes.
What’s being done about wildlife trafficking in Malaysia?
In addition to turtle eggs, the SFC has also recovered two lutungs, two siamangs, gibbons, cuscuses, and a valuable quantity of agarwood.
All of these activities are part of Operasi Bersepadu Khazanah, a joint enforcement platform that brings together Customs, the Royal Malaysia Police, the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, SFC, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability, and other partners such as Aviation Security under Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad.
“The objective is to combat the threat of smuggling of endangered and protected flora and fauna under various legislations enforced in this country,” said Customs director-general Datuk Anis Rizana Mohd Zainudin, per the Borneo Post.
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