hello lolagamester-ga
The standards seem to vary across Europe even though a European Union
common wildlife law exists.
excerpt
"In the UK, wildlife smugglers can face seven years imprisonment,
whereas in Belgium the maximum penalty for infringement of wildlife
trade laws is just three months.
In some Member States of the European Union, illegal trade in wildlife
is not even considered a criminal offence and is treated under
administrative law.
But across the European Union a common wildlife trade law was passed
four years ago, so critics say the common law is not being applied
equally across the 15 member bloc.
Last week, for the first time since the European Union adopted the law
governing trade in wildlife, representatives of the trade's regulatory
agencies, public prosecutors and NGOs met to develop recommendations
for improving its implementation to protect wild animals not only in
Europe but around the world.
All EU countries have adopted legislation to implement the common
wildlife trade law but they have varying levels of experience in
enforcing these laws.
... In Germany, smuggling of wildlife can result in up to five years
of imprisonment and a fine of DM100,000 (US$45,750).
In a major wildlife trade case in December 2000, a German national was
sentenced to three years imprisonment for smuggling protected live
animals for zoos and wildlife parks in an operation that involved more
than 25 countries...."
"Europe Seeks Tougher Enforcement of Wildlife Smuggling Law"
FRANKFURT, Germany, November 12, 2001
http://www.wag.co.za/new%20actions%20and%20news/News/europe_seeks_tougher_enforcement.htm
The following excerpt highlights the weaknesses in the UK deployment:
"On 10 April, I asked a parliamentary question about prosecutions
since 1997 under legislation on the control of trade in endangered
species. In 1997, there were 495 seizures but no one was successfully
prosecuted. In 1998, there were 498 seizures and no one successfully
prosecuted. In 1999, 336 seizures took place, but no one was
successfully prosecuted. In 2000, there were 441 seizures and only one
person was successfully prosecuted. In 2001, 434 seizures were made,
and two people were successfully prosecuted. I hope that the Minister
will not say that those figures, having gone from nought to two over
that period, are improving. Something is wrong with a system in which
so many seizures can be made and so few people successfully
prosecuted.
Under the legislation, although the maximum prison sentence is two
years, offences are non-arrestable. The police therefore cannot
caution people involved in such crimes. Suspects can be invited for
questioning at a police station, but they can refuse, and the police
have no power of entry without a warrant. When offenders are caught,
they are given minimal fines and rarely sentenced to any terms in
prison. For example, a company was fined only £1,500 for possessing
138
1 May 2002 : Column 237WH
shawls made from the fleeces of slaughtered Tibetan antelope, which
the Minister will recognise is a highly endangered species. The shawls
were worth more than £350,000 and estimated to represent 2 per cent.
of the entire species. Although more than 1,000 antelope were killed
to make the shawls, the result was fines equivalent to only £10.87 a
shawl, despite the fact that each shawl would sell for between £3,000
and £12,000. What incentive is there in that for people to abandon the
trade? They are unlikely to be stopped or caught and, even if they are
prosecuted successfully, they are unlikely to be fined significantly."
"Endangered Species" 1 May 2002 : Column 234WH from Parliament
http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/cm020501/halltext/20501h04.htm
Search Strategy:
"Wildlife Smuggling Law" europe
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22Wildlife+Smuggling+Law%22+europe&btnG=Google+Search
smuggling uk penalties imprisonment
://www.google.com/search?q=smuggling+uk+penalties+imprisonment&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&sa=n&oq=smuggling+uk+penaties+imprisonment
if you need clarification of the answer, just ask,
kind regards
lot-ga |
