Bangkok Post reported that Thailand had been praised for its achievement in tackling the illegal ivory trade as mandated by CITES, according to the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP).
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an international agreement between governments that aims to monitor the trade of endangered species, and Thailand is one of 183 members.
"This is good news. Thailand does not have to follow the National Ivory Action Plan (NIAP) action plan anymore, but it does mean that we will lower our guard," said Somkiat Soontornpitakkool, director of the Wildlife and Flora Conservation Division at DNP.
According to CITES, Thailand -- along with China, Kenya, the Philippines and Uganda -- will no longer have to follow their national action plans because of their outstanding performances in dealing with the illegal ivory trade.
NIAP in Thailand
NIAP or National Ivory Action Plan is a measure that the Thai government pledged to execute to deal with the illegal trade of ivory. In 2016, Thailand and several other states were placed by Cites under the "Primary Concern" list due to the rampant smuggling of unprocessed ivory from Africa.
If Thailand failed to solve the problem, it faced the possibility of being de-listed as a member of CITES, which may then have resulted in economic losses from diminished flora and fauna trade.
Since then, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has declared a war against poaching, which resulted in the implementation of NIAP to crack down on the trade of illegal ivory. The African elephant is listed as-as a protected species under the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act BE 2535, which provides a legal basis for prosecution.
Under NIAP, the government also requires owners of ivory items to register them with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. Over 500,000 kilograms of ivory have been registered.
The National Council for Peace and Order has also ordered authorities to collect the DNA of all domesticated elephants to help ensure that none are killed for commercial purposes.
WWF is disappointed
On their official website, WWF posted a note to express their disappointment after the 70th meeting of the Standing Committee to the CITES decided that China, Kenya, Philippines, Thailand, Tanzania and Uganda are off from NIAP. Those countries are released from a process whereby they must report on steps taken to address their roles in illegal ivory trade.
WWF’s Wildlife Practice Leader and Head of Delegation to the Standing Committee, Margaret Kinnaird said that they are dismayed by the decision since it sets them back from the fight to protect elephants. Colman O Criodain, WWF Wildlife Practice Policy Manager pointed out that the outstanding reports from these countries might be underplaying the real situation.
"The NIAP process has been undermined by over-reliance on reporting by the implicated countries, who have an obvious interest in downplaying any areas where progress is not being made."
Criodain further added, "In the meantime, the reports presented to the Committee show that there is no discernible improvement in trends regarding poaching and illegal trade."
"Far from it, countries are effectively suppressing information on illegal trade by not reporting ivory seizures to TRAFFIC, as required by CITES."
Source: The Bangkok Post, WWF