Tiger, pangolin farming in Myanmar risks ‘boosting query’

Conservationists non-public warned a unexpected commerce in Myanmar’s rules allowing the commercial farming of tigers, pangolins and varied endangered species risks extra fuelling query in China for rare wildlife products.

The Southeast Asian nation is already a hub for the illegal trafficking of wildlife, a alternate driven by query from neighbouring China and price an estimated $20 billion worldwide.

In June, Myanmar’s Wooded field Division quietly gave the green gentle to non-public zoos to put together for licences to breed 90 species, extra than 20 of which would perhaps perhaps perhaps be endangered or seriously endangered.

It was an unexpected switch that caught conservation groups off-guard however was explained by the Wooded field Division as a diagram to back prick poaching of untamed species and illegal breeding.

Tigers—belief to amount dazzling 22 in Myanmar—pangolins, elephants and diverse vulture species as well to the seriously endangered Ayeyarwady dolphin and Siamese crocodile can now furthermore be bred for his or her meat and pores and skin.

But conservationists affirm commercial farming in the long-length of time legitimises the use of endangered species and fuels market query.

“Commercial alternate has been shown to prolong illegal alternate in wildlife by growing a parallel market and boosting total query for wild animal products,” conservation groups WWF and Fauna & Flora Global (FFI) said in a joint assertion.

Experts furthermore dread Myanmar’s lack of skill to support a watch on the alternate raises the risk of disease spillover to folks from animals and even the “next COVID-19”.

John Goodrich from world wild cat conservation organisation Panthera warned farming can furthermore “provide a arrangement for laundering wild specimens”, complicating efforts to police the alternate.

CITES (the Convention on Global Replace in Endangered Species) does allow captive breeding of particular endangered species, however most attention-grabbing beneath strict rules.

But Myanmar’s skill to police the alternate is disputed, affirm environmental groups, who dread the nation risks following in the footsteps of Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, which non-public lost critical of their wildlife.

The Wooded field Division said the novel list was drawn up “in tubby adherence with the rules” and after session with “conservation groups, lecturers, and consultants in the self-discipline”.

Conservationists dread the rule of thumb commerce risk undermining the total progress Myanmar had made today to total the illegal wildlife alternate.

Rare photos caught by FFI camera traps showed the “cherish trove” of species in Myanmar’s forests, the community said.

“We must discontinue the whole lot we are going to provide the choice to to guard them.”

© 2020 AFP