A week in Asia-Pacific: UNODC supports investigators and prosecutors to improve legal responses against wildlife and forest crime

<p style="text-align: justify;"><em>H.E. Nut Chansohka providing opening remarks alongside Mr. David Frend, AML/CFT Adviser and Mentor – Mekong Region at UNODC and Clemens Beckers, Attaché Natural Resources Management – Climate Change at the EU Delegation to the Kingdom of Cambodia</em></p>

H.E. Nut Chansohka providing opening remarks alongside Mr. David Frend, AML/CFT Adviser and Mentor – Mekong Region at UNODC and Clemens Beckers, Attaché Natural Resources Management – Climate Change at the EU Delegation to the Kingdom of Cambodia

20 May 2022 - From Phnom Penh all the way to Honiara, the UNODC Environment Team, through its Global Programme on Crimes that Affect the Environment, is back on the ground to support countries to strengthen their investigative capacities against wildlife and forest crime across Asia and the Pacific.

From 16 to 18 May, over 100 officers responsible for investigations of wildlife crime cases from all provinces of Cambodia were trained on money laundering investigation techniques against wildlife and forest crime. In his opening remarks, H.E. Nut Chansohka, Secretary of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery of Cambodia recognized the importance of inter-agency collaboration and hoped that this training “will enhance the investigation capacity of money laundering cases related to wildlife crime in Cambodia.” During this workshop, funded by the European Union through the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC), participants received insightful guidance

from the Cambodian Financial Intelligence Unit, the Anti-Corruption Unit, the National Police and the Ministry of Justice on anti-money laundering investigation techniques and learnt how to identify assets freezing opportunities from wildlife trafficking targets.

At the same time, in the Philippines, state prosecutors followed a training course, funded by the United Kingdom through ICCWC, on the prosecution and supervision of investigations on wildlife criminal cases. Prosecutors from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Biodiversity Management Bureau and the Department of Justice-National Prosecution Service discussed wildlife crime regulations and potential legal barriers in the Philippines, shared good practices and collaborated on case studies. Ms. Maria Elvi B. Herrera, City Prosecutor at the Office of the City Prosecutor – Antipolo Department of Justice, shared that “it is the prosecutor’s duty to ensure that justice is served, and to ensure that justice is duly rendered in the prevention or curtailment of wildlife crime.”

<p style="text-align: justify;"><em>Prosecutors from the Philippines Department of Justice and legal officers of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources</em></p>

Prosecutors from the Philippines Department of Justice and legal officers of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources

The week ended in the Solomon Islands, with a consultative workshop on the Rapid Assessment of the Criminal Justice Response to Wildlife and Forest Crime, funded by the U.S. State Department International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs Section (INL). The Rapid Assessment was presented to several government officials with investigative and enforcement roles in wildlife and forest crime, under the leadership of the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology. In his opening remarks, Mr. Joe Horokou, Director of the Environment and Conservation Division, “encouraged all agencies present, as custodians of their natural environment, to do their duty to combat the illegal exploitation and trade in wildlife and timber.” Acknowledging that limited resources and capacity of criminal justice actors were major impediments to success in this area, Mr. Horokou recommended strengthening the capacity and cooperation between agencies and ensuring that relevant laws and regulations were aligned and consistent.

Government stakeholders at the Solomon Islands National Consultative Workshop

The assessment conducted by UNODC found that the lack of data on the scale and incidence of wildlife and forestry crime tends to mean that the criminal justice response is reactive rather than proactive. The assessment also pointed out that the current low pecuniary penalties have no deterrent effects on the multi-million dollar businesses linked to wildlife and forest crime. It was recommended to establish a multi-agency taskforce to ensure regular information and intelligence exchange across the key authorities in the Solomon Islands, and to address deficiencies in legal frameworks.

These activities took place in parallel to the 31^st Session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ), happening at the UNODC Vienna Headquarters, where Member States also discussed ways to further enhance the efforts to address wildlife trafficking and other crimes that affect the environment. The activities described above directly translated on the ground the objectives of the General Assembly Resolution 76/185 on Preventing and combating crimes that affect the environment which was adopted on 16 December 2021. Through its training and capacity-building activities across Asia and the Pacific, the UNODC Environment Team ensures a standardized, yet country-specific, response to wildlife and forest crime.

Click here to learn more about UNODC’s Global Programme on Crimes that Affect the Environment.

United Nations

Office on Drugs and Crime

A week in Asia-Pacific: UNODC supports investigators and prosecutors to improve legal responses against wildlife and forest crime