Nghe An: Tightening the illegal trading and captivity of wild animals

Many cases were detected and handled.

Recently, a series of cases of buying, selling, and keeping wild animals and rare animals in the province have been discovered and arrested by authorities.

Two subjects residing in Huong Son, Ha Tinh were arrested with evidence of 7 tigers. Photo: Van Truong

Typically, at 4:00 a.m. on August 1, at Km 421+200 National Highway 1A in Dien Ky commune (Dien Chau), the working group of the Environmental Police Department and the Provincial Traffic Police Department arrested two subjects: Tran Trung Hieu (born 1984), Nguyen Van Lai (born 1967), both residing in Huong Son, Ha Tinh, driving a 7-seat car, license plate 37A - 032.58, illegally transporting 7 live tigers with a total weight of about 33kg.

When the working group approached the car of the two subjects transporting the tiger, the subjects backed the car into the working group's car. Photo courtesy of D.C.

The above mentioned tiger cubs have no documents proving their legal origin and were transported from Huong Son (Ha Tinh) to Nghe An for consumption.

On the same day, at Hamlet 8, Dien Lam Commune (Dien Chau), the Environmental Police Department (Nghe An Provincial Police) discovered and arrested a subject for illegally storing 4 pangolins weighing 21kg. During the day, the 4 pangolins were quickly handed over by the authorities to Pu Mat National Park for care and conservation.

The Environmental Police Department rescued four pangolins on August 1, 2021. Photo: Xuan Bac

Then, at around 10:00 a.m. on January 29, Bui Dinh Quoc (born in 1985), residing in Thach Ha, Ha Tinh province, was transporting 3 pangolins to Dai Hue hamlet, Hung Tay commune, Hung Nguyen district (Nghe An) when he was arrested by the Environmental Police and Hung Nguyen district police.

In addition to buying, selling, and transporting, illegal wildlife captivity has also emerged in some areas such as Yen Thanh, Dien Chau, and Quynh Luu. Typically, in the early morning of August 4, 2021, authorities caught a tiger captivity facility in a resident's house in Do Thanh commune (Yen Thanh), seizing 17 adult tigers.

Regarding this incident, the authorities of Nghe An province have decided to prosecute the case, prosecute the accused, and temporarily detain Nguyen Van Hien (39 years old), residing in Nam Vuc hamlet, Do Thanh commune, for 4 months to investigate the violation of regulations on the protection of endangered and rare animals.

17 tigers kept in captivity by local people in Yen Thanh. Photo: CSCC

In mountainous areas, although local authorities and functional agencies have stepped up propaganda and punishment work to deter, acts of hunting, catching, trapping, and shooting wild animals by people living near forests still occur to serve food needs and sell to the local market.

At 11:45 a.m. on November 11, 2020, Que Phong District Police coordinated with Thong Thu Border Guard Station to conduct an administrative inspection of a Ford Ranger pickup truck (gray) with license plate 37C - 234.23, thereby discovering that the vehicle contained many wild animals, including: 8 mink individuals and 1 deer individual with a total weight of 45 kg. The above animals were all dead and belonged to the list of rare wild animals in group 2B.

Subject Pham Dinh Dung (X) with a number of wild animals at the police station. Photo: Quynh Chi

The driver of the car confessed to being Pham Dinh Dung (born in 1966), residing in Tien Phong commune (Que Phong). Dung bought the wild animals from a resident in Thong Thu commune for 7.5 million VND with the intention of bringing them home to use in a wedding.

In Huoi Tu commune (Ky Son), there are currently a number of subjects using sophisticated tools to illegally hunt animals, especially birds. Typically, on July 16, 2021, the People's Committee and the Huoi Tu commune police handled administrative actions, warned, and reminded PVD subjects residing in Muong Xen town who illegally hunted birds in Huoi Tu area.

This subject used a motorbike with a sound trap to lure birds to fly, then used sticky plastic to catch wild birds. Local people discovered this action and reported it to the police.

The subject used a motorbike with a sound trap to lure birds. Photo: CSCC

In addition, taking advantage of the ability to easily reach buyers and hide their identities through social networking sites, many people regularly sell products related to wild animals and rare animals on closed groups, open groups on Zalo, Facebook... using various tricks to avoid detection and arrest by authorities.

According to statistics from the Education for Nature (ENV) Center under the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations, from 2010 to 2020, about 23% of the nearly 800 subjects convicted of wildlife crimes nationwide were from Nghe An or Ha Tinh.

Seven tiger cubs weighing about 33 kg in total were rescued and handed over to the Wildlife Rescue Center, Pu Mat National Park. Photo: Van Truong

Talking about the work of fighting and preventing crimes related to buying, selling, transporting and keepingwildlifeendangered, precious, rare, Lieutenant Colonel Tran Phuc Thinh - Head of the Environmental Police Department (Nghe An Police) said that recently the unit has discovered 6 cases, arrested 9 subjects, seized more than 3,000 kg of animals and products of endangered, precious, rare animals (24 tigers, 11 pangolins, 1 bear, 4 bear legs).

Strengthening propaganda associated with fighting and preventing

In order to strengthen state management and combat illegal trading, storage and transportation of wildlife, on September 8, 2020, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Plan No. 504/KH-UBND on implementing Directive No. 29/CT-TTg dated July 23, 2020 of the Prime Minister on a number of urgent solutions in wildlife management.

In which, the departments and branches are assigned to review the system of legal documents according to their assigned functions and authority to propose to competent authorities to amend and supplement sanctions for illegal consumption and use of wild animals.

Because in reality, some documents are not consistent and lack specific instructions, causing difficulties in arresting, investigating, and trying criminal cases to handle offenders who violate regulations on protecting animals in the list of endangered, precious, and rare species that are prioritized.

The Provincial People's Committee also requested strict control and severe handling of illegal hunting, trading, transporting, slaughtering, consuming, storing, advertising, and harming of wild animals, especially wild animals of the mammal, bird, and reptile classes in the natural environment.

Tigers are raised and cared for at Pu Mat National Park. Photo: Ba Hau

Local authorities, agencies and sectors are responsible for strengthening the dissemination of laws to officials, civil servants, public employees and people to protect wild animals, especially endangered, precious and rare wild animals. Strengthen inspection, control, combat, detection, arrest and strict handling of illegal export, import, hunting, capture, purchase, sale, transportation, slaughter, consumption, storage, captivity, advertising and harming endangered, precious and rare animals and wild animals according to the provisions of law.

Scientific workshop on strengthening interdisciplinary cooperation in wildlife protection at Pu Mat National Park. Photo: Thanh Chung

Then, on September 22, 2020, the Provincial People's Committee issued Official Dispatch No. 6668/UBND-NN directing the People's Committees of Yen Thanh, Dien Chau, and Quynh Luu districts to strengthen the management and protection of wild animals and handle the illegal captivity of wild animals.

After more than 5 months of implementation, it is found that, besides the changes and results achieved, the inspection and handling of illegal wildlife captivity activities of localities still do not meet the requirements.

On March 24, 2021, the Provincial People's Committee continued to issue Official Dispatch No. 1574/UBND-NN on urging the implementation of inspection and handling of illegal wildlife captivity activities. In which, it requires: localities and relevant functional units to strengthen the dissemination of laws on wildlife protection in key areas, down to each commune, village, hamlet, individual and household.

Signing a commitment in the program to say no to using wild animals. Photo: Bao Han

The People's Committees of Yen Thanh, Dien Chau and Quynh Luu districts continue to direct the interdisciplinary delegations to promote the sense of responsibility, focus on completing propaganda and mobilization work, organize the signing of commitments in key areas, especially the work of approaching and counting the actual number of illegally captive wild animals, not to be assigned to the commune and hamlet levels to do it on their behalf, and not to let the implementation drag on.

The Provincial People's Committee also requested localities to take disciplinary action against members who lack a sense of responsibility and do not seriously perform assigned tasks.

Direct the Forest Ranger force to preside over and coordinate with functional branches and local authorities to regularly inspect compliance with laws on wildlife protection in the management area; promptly detect and strictly handle violations of the law in accordance with regulations, not allowing complications to arise, affecting security and order.

Awarding to the Environmental Police Department. Photo: CSCC

In mountainous areas, especially border areas, in addition to propaganda work, many localities have organized people to sign commitments, including in village covenants, about not hunting, buying, selling, or transporting wild and rare animals.

In Con Cuong district on April 28, 2021, the District People's Committee launched the program series "Con Cuong district says no to illegal use of wildlife". Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Hoang Sy Kien - Chairman of Con Cuong District People's Committee, said that the program series aims to build Con Cuong district into a pioneer district in not using illegal wildlife. At the same time, it becomes a leading unit in implementing Directive 29/CT-TTg of the Prime Minister and Plan No. 504/KH-UBND dated September 8, 2020 of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee.

Con Cuong district organized an event to launch the program series "Con Cuong district says no to illegal use of wild animals". Photo: Bao Han

Recently, on August 2, 2021, the Provincial Party Committee's Propaganda Department issued Plan No. 20-KH/BTGTU to propagate the prohibition of hunting, trading, transporting, slaughtering, advertising, consuming, and storing wild, endangered, and rare animals and plants in the province. Aiming to reduce the risk of hunting and trading, contributing to preventing the risk of species extinction and conserving biodiversity in Nghe An; effectively handling black spots of encroachment on wild, endangered, and rare animals and plants.

In addition to propaganda work, it is necessary to step up the fight against, prevent and handle violations, and destroy organized and transnational crime rings in the illegal purchase, transportation, export, import, re-export and transit of specimens of wild, endangered and rare animals and plants.