Eco crimes: transnational, organised and serious

The 22nd session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) is under way in Vienna this week.

The CCPCJ is a key body within the United Nations, dealing with crime prevention and criminal justice policy and EIA is one of several organisations pushing for it to expand the work of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to address illicit trafficking in protected species of wild fauna and flora.

Tomorrow (Tuesday), the session will host a side event organised by UNODC, at which EIA and WWF have been invited to speak on the issue of wildlife and forest crime.

The event will be addressed by UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov and the Secretary General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), John Scanlon, as well as representatives from countries and leading environmental civil society organisations to discuss ways to reduce demand for illegal wildlife, as well as the need for this activity to be recognised as a serious transnational organised crime.

This special prepared film on wildlife and forest crime will also be screened at the event …..

Examples of wildlife and forest crime will be given from three different global regions: Africa, Asia and Latin America, and representatives from South Africa, Indonesia and Peru will present the challenges their countries face and the opportunities they envision to address the illicit trade and trafficking of endangered wild fauna and flora.

EIA, WWF and TRAFFIC have also produced a joint briefing on the issue to the CCPCJ, which you can read below and download here.