Emily

by: Emily Sucherman http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMUa-J9Qgqw&feature=related- anderson cooper covers the illegal animal trade in Thailand
 * ILLEGAL ANIMAL TRADE **

Brief Intro: ** My issue is tackling the problem of animals being bought and sold in the black market. I will primarily be focusing on the largest countries that are involved in this issue, such as China, because that is where the biggest black market animal trade takes place. In addition to focusing on the black market animal trade, I will also be discussing the poaching of animals and the illegal business of smuggling and selling endangered species as pets. The WWF (World Wildlife Fund) has estimated that animal and wildlife trafficking to be worth between $15 billion and $25 billion a year. - Enforce the Endangered Species Act that was enacted by the US government in 1973, which restricts the types of animals that can be exported from the United States. - Enforce years later, the United States signed the 1975 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). CITES, which has now been ratified by 130 countries, requires special permits to transport endangered animals and plants across national boundaries. It also bans the worldwide trade of animals on the verge of extinction. - Through educational programs, teach people why this type of behavior is wrong and dramatize the terrible consequences and harm caused to the animals. - Utilize breeding centers that allow people to borrow animals from the wild and breed them to produce more animals. Require the first generation of animals to be released into the wild. All generations after that may be sold legally, except for 10 percent, which must be set free. In 1995, 100,000 animals from 20 endangered species were released into the wild. - Develop compromises between the environmental conservationists and the animal trade that can be adopted by more nations and eventually put the cruel trade in black market endangered animals out of business. - Educate people about this issue o  Educate people that live in these countries that don’t enforce protection laws - More government involvement o  Enforcing the laws that have already been created and the countries that have already agreed to them - Prosecute the illegal offenders of the animal trade - Governments to increase the penalties for illegal wildlife trade for offenders - Take away the incentive for many for those potential traders by providing them more income for their legal skills   -   WWF and TRAFFIC (the wildlife trade monitoring network of the WWF) have been campaigning tirelessly over the last 15 months to get the maximum prison sentence for wildlife trade crimes increased from two to five years, thereby making these offences arrestable in the UK. o  On 17 June 2003 the government tabled an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill which will bring these changes into effect. -  The creation of [|Endangered Species Day] [|,] [|May 16, 2008][|**,**] [|by the National Wildlife Federation] **- “**Events are held across the country to highlight endangered species stories” -  Numerous websites have been set up so people around the world can contribute money to help fight the war on illegal animal traffickers -  The demand for such pets has created a worldwide illegal trade in endangered animals now worth an estimated $10 billion per year. It has also brought many of the world's most endangered species to the edge of extinction. -  Animal smuggling today is second only to drug smuggling as a major international illegal business. The profits are enormous mainly because poor native peoples, who know nothing about the endangered status of the animals, sell them to smugglers for next to nothing. -  In some third world countries, like Vietnam, the average farmer only makes about $200 a year off of his crops, however, if that farmer deals in the illegal trade market, he can make as much as $3,000 for one bear -  The opportunity for many government officials to make a lot of money in the illegal animal trade business breeds corruption
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http://www.wildaid.org/index.asp?CID=1
 * Websites:**

http://www.worldwildlife.org/

http://www.traffic.org/