Alfred Wasike
23 August 2005
Kampala — ENDANGERED wildlife, including gorillas and chimps are being traded illegally on the internet. It is a lucrative trade that conservationists fear is driving the world's endangered species to the brink of extinction.
A report titled Caught in the web: wildlife trade on the Internet by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), released globally yesterday, reveals how vast quantities of wildlife products and live animals are poached from their habitats and traded illegally via cyberspace.
In response, Uganda, which has one of the world's most spectacular fauna and flora, has sent out an alert for the public to look out, especially on the internet, and report to the Uganda Wildlife
Authority (UWA), the dangerous trade that poachers have perfected by using the internet for anonymity.
UWA executive director Moses Mapesa warned, "This is a serious crime. We urge the public to help us watch our wildlife, especially when they are surfing the internet. Please call us on 25641355000, 77741495, 77955159 and 77665225. Although we have mechanisms for monitoring, evaluation and control to deal with global bodies like IFAW, we also need public support."
IFAW found some of the world's most endangered species advertised online and almost all of them traded illegally. Exotic pets, including a live gorilla for sale in London, a Siberian tiger and four baby chimps on US websites were found, as well as other critically endangered species.
The wildlife rights activists discovered that every single day, thousands of wild animals and animal parts from live chimpanzees, huge ivory tusks to tiny dried seahorses are traded on cyberspace.
IFAW's three-month investigation showed how, in one week alone, over 9,000 live animals or products were for sale online in chatrooms
and on legitimate trading sites such as eBay. At least 70% of these were from species protected by international laws like the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. The law prohibits commercial trade in species listed on Appendix I (those most endangered).
The investigation was restricted to five categories of animals hence the findings is just the tip of the iceberg. IFAW's one-week survey looked at live primates, ivory items, turtle and tortoise products, bags and fashion items made from endangered reptiles and wild cats.
The IFAW report adds to conservationists' fears that the growing and largely unchecked Internet trade, could spell disaster for endangered species. Many of the animals are targeted by poachers to meet the demands of wealthy consumers as well as being traded as 'pets'.
Phyllis Campbell-McRae, director of IFAW UK, said: "Trade on the Internet is easy, cheap and anonymous. But it is clear unscrupulous traders and criminal gangs are taking advantage of the World Wide Web. The result is a cyber blackmarket, where the future of the world's rarest animals are being traded away. This situation must be tackled immediately by governments and website owners before it is too late.
Trade in wildlife is driven by consumer demand, so when the buying stops, the killing will too. Our message to online shoppers is simple: "Buying wildlife online is as damaging as killing it yourself,", Ms Campbell-McRae added.
Prof. William Dutton, director of the Oxford Internet Institute at Oxford University, said: "The Internet is a two-edged sword. While it can be used by some to support the trading of wildlife, others can use it to expose and challenge it. Laws against unlawful use of any communication medium exist, but governments and agencies need to communicate to address activities that span the globe."
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