Bangkok--28 Sep--FREELAND Foundation
Acting on information provided by FREELAND Foundation, the Environmental Crimes Division of the Royal Thai Police conducted one of its largest sweeps to date of Bangkok’s Chatuchak Market on Saturday, September 25th, with follow up investigations until earlier today involving 30 enforcement officers. The coordinated raids resulted in the confiscation of 179 birds, including songbirds and owls. Additional raids were made in the market, and two additional shop owners were brought in for interviews in relation to the sale of protected snakes and tortoises. However, because of legal loopholes, only one rader was arrested and the others were later released without charges.
This latest raid in Chatuchak Market — a popular tourist destination — is the third in a series of Thai Police enforcement actions within a month that are aimed at breaking up illegal cross border syndicates using Thailand to trade in exotic animals. Police previously nabbed an illegal exotic animal dealer in Chatuchak Market on August 27th, which led to further related arrests, including one in Pattaya on September 12th.
Colonel Kiattipong Khawsamang, Deputy Commander of the Natural Resources and Environmental Crimes Division (NRECD) said following the raids, “This face to face operation will send a strong message to traders of illegal wildlife that we are serious about stopping it. However, the punishment of this crime is still weak.” The Colonel added that “With the current level of demand, the illegal wildlife trade will not stop, and it’s everyone’s responsibility to create awareness and be a part in wildlife conservation.”
The Royal Thai Police have stepped up efforts to stop the illegal sale of exotic animals at Thailand’s popular tourist markets in Bangkok and Pattaya. Poaching and trafficking operations, often backed by organized crime, remove species such as songbirds, reptiles, turtles and slow lorises from Southeast Asia’s protected areas and sell them in these markets as pets. This trade is threatening the continued survival of many rare and important species. Unfortunately, the Royal Thai Police efforts to stop the trade have been frequently stymied by weak, outdated laws, allowing those involved to openly continue their operations. While environmental and legal advocates have long pushed for stronger laws, they have not yet been ratified in Thailand.
"FREELAND congratulates the Royal Thai Police for working diligently and consistently to enforce the law," said Steven Galster, Director of FREELAND Foundation. "Unfortunately, Thailand's wildlife law is so weak and full of loopholes that most illegal traders may go back to work the next week, which is discouraging news to hard working police and law abiding traders, but good news for the crooks."
If convicted, arrested traders face up to four years imprisonment and a fine of up to THB 40,000 (USD 1,250) for violating Thailand’s Wild Animal Reservation and Preservation Act B.E.2535 (illegally processing protected animals and illegally importing wildlife) and Customs Act B.E.2469 (illegally importing smuggled goods). It should be noted, however, that no illegal traders from Chatuchak have ever been imprisoned.
While the extensive investigation and associated arrests were designed and sponsored by Thai Police, the team responsible for the operations benefitted from training arranged by the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN WEN), sponsored in part by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and FREELAND Foundation.
Southeast Asia is a major source of illegally traded wildlife, supplying a global black-market worth an estimated US$ 10-30 billion annually. Authorities are strengthening inter-agency and international cooperation through the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN-WEN) to respond to this illicit trans-national trade, which threatens to drive many endangered species to extinction.
For more information and high-resolution photographs, contact FREELAND Media Liaison Pornvadee Piyakhun at +66 22042719 or +66 818598629, or by email at
[email protected]