Defra urged to act over online animal sales

Tuesday, 16 August 2005 12:00 AM

Wildlife campaigners are urging the government to crack down on the sale of endangered animals on the internet.

The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) today claims many endangered animals are being driven to extinction through the trading of live animals and animal parts on online auction sites such as eBay.

It estimates more than 9,000 live animals or products were for sale online in chatrooms and on legitimate trading sites over the course of just one week, at least 70 per cent of which were from species protected by international law.

"Trade on the internet is easy, cheap and anonymous," said IFAW UK director Phyllis Campbell-McRae.

"However, it is clear that unscrupulous traders and sophisticated criminal gangs are taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the world wide web.

"The result is a cyber black market where the future of the world's rarest animals is being traded away. This situation must be tackled immediately by governments and website owners before it is too late."

Biodiversity minister Jim Knight welcomed the report, saying that the National Wildlife Crime Intelligence Unit was "working closely with internet service providers to raise awareness of wildlife controls and to enhance intelligence-gathering on wildlife crime".

He added: "Last month, we introduced tough new penalties for people convicted of trading in endangered species, meaning they now face up to five years in prison or an unlimited fine."

But the report calls for more, urging the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to launch a public awareness campaign targeting internet users who may be unaware that what they are doing is illegal.

It also calls for a legally-binding code of practice for internet auction sites and other websites where wildlife is sold, which would leave users in no doubt of the legal requirements necessary for trading in endangered species.

In addition, the IFAW wants the government to invest in greater research and monitoring to establish the extent of the problem and develop better cooperation between enforcement agencies and campaign organisations.

Professor William Dutton, director of the Oxford Internet Institute, added: "Laws exist to stop the unlawful use of any communication medium, but governments and agencies need to communicate in order to address activities that span the globe."

A statement from eBay, which was described by Ms Campbell-McRae as "one of the good ones" compared to other sites, said it acts beyond the law in controlling life animal sales.

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