- Her bullet-riddled body was found last month amid the
dense undergrowth of eastern Thailand. Those who stumbled on the blood-soaked
carcass described milk still flowing from her breast. The elephant's calf
was nowhere to be seen, snatched by her mother's killers along with her
valuable tusks.
-
- By now the ivory will have found its way to Bangkok,
where hundreds of British visitors will have deliberated whether to smuggle
it home. It may already be available on the streets of London, home of
the UK's flourishing and sophisticated ivory market.
-
- In three weeks' time British ministers will arrive in
Bangkok for the most crucial talks this year on protecting the planet's
wildlife. Yet an Observer investigation reveals the city remains unrivalled
as the world's greatest hub for the illegal trade in rare animals.
-
- Yet on the eve of the international summit, concern is
shifting closer to home. Tens of thousands of Britons and their desire
for acquiring anything from snakeskins to tiger pelts to ivory trinkets
stand accused of accelerating the slaughter of endangered animals. Their
willingness to flout wildlife law has fostered a deep sense of shame among
Britain's conservationists.
-
- The UK government is also under fire for choosing to
remain silent on the scale of Bangkok's trade. Despite receiving a wealth
of evidence on the city's role in the smuggling of rare species, ministers
have refused publicly to condemn Thailand's failure to quash its slaughter
of endangered animals. Some believe Britain should first concentrate on
the increasing problems in its own backyard, citing its 'uncontrolled and
thriving' ivory market. An investigation for the International Fund for
Animal Welfare has identified the UK as the third-biggest source of illegal
ivory into the US, one of the world's largest markets. The scale of illegal
animal trafficking in Britain is stunning. More than 570 illegal wildlife
imports were seized by UK customs officers each day during the most comprehensive
analysis of the crisis so far.
-
- Environmentalists say the situation is accelerating the
fastest extinction of species since the disappearance of the dinosaurs
65 million years ago. In Bangkok, evidence suggests it remains as rife
as ever. An undercover investigation, yet to be published, by the Dorset-based
Monkey World found 38 orang-utans had been smuggled from Thailand into
Cambodia over the summer.
-
- Director Jim Cronin estimates up to 600 of Asia's only
great ape are being kept illegally in Thailand. 'We are talking about the
wholesale decimation of the orang-utan by the Thai government. Where has
the UK, and the world, been?' said Cronin.
-
- Today among the 10,000 stalls of Bangkok's sprawling
Chatuchak weekend market, a major draw for British tourists, The Observer
was repeatedly told it would be possible to order orang-utans, snow leopards
or rare birds by market traders. Similarly sources told Monkey World they
could buy an orang-utan for £4,000 but that prices will fall after
the spotlight of Thailand's international talks fades.
-
- Some Britons will be unable to wait that long. Few, though,
are unlikely to match the audacity of Raymond Humphreys, 45. When customs
officers opened his suitcase at Heathrow after a flight from Bangkok two
years ago, 23 endangered bird species worth £35,000 were found wedged
into tight glass tubes. Six had died en route. Later, on top of Humphreys's
Norfolk caravan, police came across a present for his wife - a golden-cheeked
gibbon, one of less than 1,000 left.
-
- A streak of dried blood clung to the inside of the tusk.
Viewed from another angle, though, its polished veneer gleamed without
blemish: a reminder of why the world's most valuable bone remains craved
by so many Britons. This was the finest-quality raw ivory around, hacked
from an Asian elephant, each tusk as long as a man's arm and the weight
of a six-month-old baby. Unveiled from the dusty backroom of a Bangkok
shop last week, the pair were offered to The Observer for £3,500.
They came without paperwork and were perfectly illegal. 'I don't care and
you don't care; this is ivory,' beamed the proprietor when told of plans
to whisk them back to London for sale. His store stood in the centre of
the Thai capital, a short cab ride from the huge Queen Sirikit Convention
Centre where 5,000 delegates representing more than 160 countries will
shortly convene to discuss around 40 proposals on how to improve protection
for the most threatened plants and animals.
-
- All those about to arrive will know that not only is
the elephant the former symbol of Thailand, but it is that of the Convention
on the International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) too. Yet the host
country continues to fail its former icon.
-
- Numbers of wild Thai elephants have fallen to fewer than
3,000. Most countries attending will have assumed the killing to have stopped
during the run-up to the talks. The fact that ivory can still openly be
bought in downtown Bangkok will embarrass figures such as Britain's Environment
Minister, Elliot Morley.
-
- Of equal concern are the findings of an Observer investigation
that has unearthed a trial of corruption, harassment and even death threats
as elements within Thailand resist efforts to suppress the trade before
the gaze of the world's media arrives. Even the Thai Prime Minister, it
has emerged, has come under fierce pressure from the powerful interests
that profiteer from the covert smuggling of endangered creatures.
-
- Today Thailand's dark secret has become second only to
the country's notorious narcotics rings in terms of value. And it is just
as dangerous.
-
- At first glance, the silver Mazda seen trundling down
a dirt track towards the Laos border seemed like just another lost traveller.
On closer inspection, highway police noticed the vehicle was carrying a
load so heavy its boot sank low above the rear axle. The reason soon became
clear. Inside they found the bloody carcass of a huge Bengal tiger sawn
clean in half. At 4pm the driver Leuthai Tiewchareun was arrested, by 6pm
he was free on bail.
-
- Manop Laohapraser - one of Thailand's senior Cites officials
and a man whom Morley would expect to meet next month - is reported to
have arrived at the scene. Despite his presence, no DNA of the tiger was
taken, while a microchip embedded in the creature's neck was never reported,
making the tiger's origins impossible to deduce. Yet Leuthai was well-known
to the authorities. Undercover investigators had identified him as a major
player in an illegal animal smuggling network codenamed Cobra.
-
- Last November when police raided his home, it looked
more like a zoo. More than 20 pairs of bear paws lay beside piles of fresh
tiger meat. His deep-freeze contained the body of a baby orang-utan from
Indonesia. Back then, Leuthai had been arrested, but had again jumped his
£3,000 bail.
-
- Sources say he will be in Bangkok as Morley and the UK
delegation touch down for Cites on 2 October. Manop himself is now suspended
over his alleged involvement in the sale of 100 Bengal tigers to a Chinese
theme park that some believed were destined for human consumption.
-
- In addition, evidence collated by WildAid and sent to
the Thai authorities reveals that Cobra has links to a police intelligence
officer as well as a powerful Thai family. Documents detail the bribes
Leuthai's network would pay to Thai border officials such as £150
for up to 400kg of pangolins, a type of anteater. To date, they provide
one of the first insights into the corruption that underpins Bangkok's
illegal wildlife network.
-
- As profits have grown, so too has the involvement of
violent criminals. Even the man appointed to clean up Thailand's illegal
trade at the behest of the Prime Minister admits he has been threatened
after targeting the biggest players. Major-General Sawake Pinsinchai, head
of the Forestry Police, told The Observer: 'There have been several threats
in the past. The problem in the past and present is that you are fighting
some organisations that are part of a very big network and are very well
connected to influential people and politicians.'
-
- One prominent conservationist was recently told by a
Thai official that he could not even attend Cites. Attempts were even made
to discredit Edwin Wiek, who runs the acclaimed Wildlife Rescue Centre
in Petchaburi, north of Bangkok. Despite nursing 115 previously sickly
and malnourished animals he has been arrested and charged on grounds that
have left supporters baffled. Other campaigners have fared far worse. One
was recently killed after trying to protect a mangrove swamp from developers.
A forestry campaigner was shot dead two weeks ago north of Bangkok. 'I
am on the list, by the time you found out how high up you are it's too
late', one told The Observer last week in the safety of a guarded hotel.
-
- Steven Galster, director of Thailand's WildAid, said:
'People get killed around here for a lot less.' More than 240 wildlife
dealers, some with suspected connections to corrupt police and border officials
are thought to operate out of Bangkok into neighbouring countries. Leuthai's
network covers the whole of south-east Asia and relies on Thailand's 1,800
miles of porous borders. Three hours' drive east from Bangkok lies Cambodia
and the region of Pailin, a favoured animal smuggling route. So far this
year eight people monitoring the Cambodian side have been killed. Some
manage to survive ferocious machete attacks. One man recently required
74 stitches.
-
- Such murders are safeguarding a system that involves
single shipments into Bangkok worth £6 million. Single cargos of
3,000 pangolins and 600 macaws have been found. Figures passed to the Thai
authorities reveal £1.6m of illegal wildlife passed through the city
in the six months up to March.
-
- 'As a trading centre Bangkok is just phenomenal, yet
we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg,' said Lincolnshire-born Tim
Redford of WildAid, who admits he kept his 'head down' for years while
investigating the trade. The level of seeming co-operation between criminals
and officials continues to infuriate the country's fledgling environmental
movement.
-
- A common complaint involves the practice of raids on
suspect smugglers being called off at the last minute after a tip-off.
Equally important is the dealers' ability to operate with impunity. Hundreds
have been arrested, but all, like Leuthai, remain free. No one has received
the maximum four years in jail. Yet those like Sawake believe they are
starting to make a difference. In just one month 198,465 animals, including
tigers and bears, were seized in 656 separate shipments.
-
- Deep within the endless suburbs of Bangkok, Safari World
has found little trouble luring thousands of UK tourists over the years.
A firm favourite among British families are the orang-utans forced to wear
garish costumes as they mimic Thai boxers. This week, however, the zoo
will find itself at the centre of a storm of international outrage that
threatens to cast a shadow over the country's hosting of Cites. A year
ago the Thai embassy in London received strong evidence that the orang-utans
had been smuggled illegally from Indonesia. Sawake ordered an investigation.
The zoo owners replied that they had bred the animals and although they
once had 110 of the prized apes 41 had been cremated after falling ill.
Their claims were rejected.
-
- Finally, police raided the centre and found the remaining
creatures. They had been hidden in another part of the zoo. Eight days
ago the zoo's vet was convicted of lying to the police. The Indonesian
authorities are demanding the creatures be handed back.
-
- However, a letter seen by The Observer from the director
general of Thailand's department for national parks suddenly claims that
they would be suspending action against the owners of Safari World. For
conservationists hoping for a symbolic victory against wildlife traders
it was a major blow. For Sawake it beggared belief. 'If I am asked to drop
the case then you better ask someone else to take over,' he said yesterday.
There are increasing signs the British government, whose attempts on tackling
wildlife crime are ranked among the best in the world, may raise the issue
with the Thai authorities this month. Though for many of the world's most
precious creatures it will be too late.
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- Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited
2004
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- http://www.guardian.co.uk/conservation/story/0,13369,1302664,00.html
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