Sold for their body parts
Tigers killed at 18 months old & sold for their body parts, caught in nationwide network of illegal traders & corrupt politicians along with other exotic wildlife.
Tigers killed at 18 months old & sold for their body parts, caught in nationwide network of illegal traders & corrupt politicians along with other exotic wildlife.
Photo above of a tiger carcass found after police inspected a slaughter house in northeast Bangkok.
Photo below of police major general Narasak Hemnithi pointing at a red iguana during an inspection of a zoo in Saraburi. Police have seized some animals as the owner cannot show the documents which entitle him to possess the animals (Photo: Apichit Jinakul).
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Crimes
Recent wildlife seizures open lid on burgeoning industry
Authorities suspect corruption among officials helps smugglers
12/03/2012
Wassayos Ngamkham
The latest cache of 51 species of wild and rare creatures seized from a 100-rai private shelter in Saraburi's Kaeng Khoi district last week is just the start.
Pol Lt Col Atthapol Sudsai, an inspector attached to Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division, said exotic animals are being bred across the country in illegal "zoos" and shipped to other countries, alive or as carcasses.
"Demand and supply, and corruption in state agencies, makes it a robust business," said the top wildlife trade buster.
Pol Lt Col Atthapol said tigers are the most desired wild animals because almost all their body parts - whiskers, hides, eyes, sex organs or bones - can be put to some use.
Furthermore, some people keep tigers as pets in a show of power and wealth.
Wild tigers have been driven to the edge of extinction, and it is an unfortunate irony that their increasing rarity only makes them more in demand.
Wildlife authorities have twice allowed people who possess tigers to legally register the animals with the state, in 1992 and 2003.
"Oddly, the number of registered tigers remains unchanged," Pol Col Atthapol said.
This indicates there must be 'tiger laundering' going on, but authorities take no action.
He said the wildlife "launderers" are lobbying to have their zoos legalised so they can breed to supply the market.
Pol Col Atthapol said the illegally kept tigers are typically killed when they reach 18 months old so their body parts can be sold, with the slaughtered ones being replaced by cubs.
Keeping a tiger incurs monthly expenses of about 10,000 baht, so it is not profitable for the illegal traders to keep them alive once they reach maturity.
Pol Col Atthapol's division has identified several targets in Chiang Mai, Chaiyaphum, Ubon Ratchathani, Chon Buri, Sa Kaeo, Prachin Buri, Nakhon Nayok and Saraburi in its effort to curb the trade.
He said these targets are connected and financed by the same investors with close political affiliations.
"It's time to speak up. The longer I work, the more I feel for these animals. It's time for us to act," he said.
He said the arrest of Anucha Sae Ma in Bangkok's Khlong Sam Wa district and confiscation of 400kg of tiger meat along with carcasses and parts of other wild animals early last month is linked to an illegal zoo in Chaiyaphum which was raided in September.
In that raid, two leopard cubs were impounded. It was estimated that together they would have fetched 1-1.5 million baht if sold to overseas buyers.
Regarding the raid of the private animal shelter in Kaeng Khoi district, Pol Lt Col Atthapol said the site had been designated as a new private zoo, but the owner had not yet obtained a licence from the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department and could not provide documents to show where he had obtained the animals.
Pol Maj Gen Narasak Hemnithi, commander of Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division, said authorities would work harder to stamp out the illegal wildlife trade.
He said the agency will no longer rely on complaints to be lodged before acting. Field agents will be used in the target areas to trace the illicit trade, he said.
Contact Crime Track: [email protected]
(Source: Bangkok Post, Crimes, Recent wildlife seizures open lid on burgeoning industry, Authorities suspect corruption among officials helps smugglers, 12/03/2012, Wassayos Ngamkham, link)
Illegal Wildlife Vocabulary
wildlife - animals living in the jungle
slaughter - kill
slaughter house - a building where food animals (chicken, pigs, cows) are killed and stripped for their meat
body parts - all the different parts of the animal: the legs, the head, the eyes, the skin, etc.
carcass - the body of a dead animal
exotic animals - rare or unusual animals that are kept as pets or sometimes for special exotic food, examples include tigers, leopards, monkeys, crocodiles, large snakes, etc (See Wikipedia)
burgeoning - growing or developing quickly
open lid on - reveal and show people something hidden and secret
Recent wildlife seizures open lid on burgeoning industry
suspect - to believe that something is true, especially something bad เป็นที่สงสัยว่า
corruption - (See Wikipedia on bribery, corporate corruption, and political corruption)
officials - high ranking government workers with power and authority to do things and make decisions
smugglers - people who transport illegal things into and out of countries (example: drug smugglers)
Authorities suspect corruption among officials helps smugglers
iguana - a kind of lizard (See Wikipedia)
inspection - the act of looking closely at something or someone and to check that everything is as it should be; examination การตรวจสอบอย่างละเอียด การตรวจสอบตรวจตรา
documents - legal papers that show and prove something เอกสาร
entitle - give you permission or the right to do something
possess - have something, own something
documents which entitle him to possess the animals
series - many things happening over time (one then another then another and so on)
haul - when the police catch illegal goods such as drugs or illegal wildlife
large hauls of live and dead wild animals
blown the lid off - reveal and show the public something hidden and secret
illegal - against the law ผิดกฎหมาย, นอกกฎหมาย
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
blown the lid off the illegal wildlife trade and
breeding - the keeping of animals or plants in order to produce young animals from them การผสมพันธุ์สัตว์เพื่อขยายพันธุ์
unlicensed breeding of exotic animals in Thailand.
A series of large hauls of live and dead wild animals - and especially tigers - over the past two months has blown the lid off the illegal wildlife trade and unlicensed breeding of exotic animals in Thailand.
cache - a quantity of things that have been hidden, especially weapons สิ่งที่ซ่อนไว้
species - a set of animals or plants in which the members have similar characteristics to each other and can breed with each other พันธ์,จำพวก
rare - not often seen or found หาได้ยาก uncommon, unusual ซึ่งหายาก not happening very often ที่หาได้ยาก
shelter - a place where people are protected form danger or bad weather ที่หลบภัย ที่พักชั่วคราว
The latest cache of 51 species of wild and rare creatures seized from a 100-rai private shelter in Saraburi's Kaeng Khoi district last week is just the start.
inspector - an official whose job is to check that things are in the correct condition or that people are doing what they should ผู้ตรวจสอบ
Pol Lt Col Atthapol Sudsai, an inspector attached to Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division, said exotic animals are being bred across the country in illegal "zoos" and shipped to other countries, alive or as carcasses.
state - government รัฐ
state agencies - government agencies or departments
robust - strong
robust business
bust - catch someone doing illegal activities and arrest
buster - a person who busts (arrests person doing illegal activities)
wildlife trade buster
"Demand and supply, and corruption in state agencies, makes it a robust business," said the top wildlife trade buster.
whiskers - mustache
hides - the tough skins of animals (examples: elephant hide)
sex organs - penis, vagina, parts of body for baby-making
Pol Lt Col Atthapol said tigers are the most desired wild animals because almost all their body parts - whiskers, hides, eyes, sex organs or bones - can be put to some use.
power - energy in the form of electricity produced in large quantities and used to operate lights, machines, and heating
wealth - how much money and assets a person or country owns
Furthermore, some people keep tigers as pets in a show of power and wealth.
extinction - when all of one kind of animal dies (so this kind of animal does not exist anymore), death of all living members of a species of animal or plant การสูญพันธุ์
driven to the edge of extinction - a kind of animal abused and killed until there are almost none left
unfortunate - unlucky โชคร้าย, เคราะห์ไม่ดี
irony - odd and amusing because it is the opposite of what you would expect การแดกดัน
unfortunate irony - something strange (irony) and sad (unfortunate) that happened
rarity - very rare even, does not have very often
demand - the need and desire to buy goods and services by households and businesses
Wild tigers have been driven to the edge of extinction, and it is an unfortunate irony that their increasing rarity only makes them more in demand.
authorities - government officials; the police or people in official organisations who have the legal power to make people obey laws or rules เจ้าหน้าที่ (ตำรวจ หรือผู้มีอำนาจ)
wildlife authorities - government officials who oversee wildlife
possess - to have or own something ครอบครอง, ถือครอง
possess tigers - have and own tigers
register - make an official record of something with the government; have name put on an official list (and receive permission to do something like vote or marry) ลงทะเบียน ขึ้นทะเบียน (ขอใบอนุญาต)
legally register the animals with the state
registered - officially recorded as a business with the government (and given permission to operate)
the number of registered tigers remains unchanged
Wildlife authorities have twice allowed people who possess tigers to legally register the animals with the state, in 1992 and 2003. "Oddly, the number of registered tigers remains unchanged," Pol Col Atthapol said.
indicates - shows
breed - raise animals for the purpose of producing more animals เพาะเลี้ยง
typically - usually; normally อย่างเป็นแบบฉบับ
cubs - babies
This indicates there must be 'tiger laundering' going on, but authorities take no action. He said the wildlife "launderers" are lobbying to have their zoos legalised so they can breed to supply the market. Pol Col Atthapol said the illegally kept tigers are typically killed when they reach 18 months old so their body parts can be sold, with the slaughtered ones being replaced by cubs.
incurs monthly expenses - needs money to be spent to pay for daily living needs every month
traders - people who trade securities (stocks, bonds) and derivatives ผู้ค้าหุ้นและหลักทรัพย์
illegal traders
maturity - when a person or animal is an adult already
reach maturity - reached the time when they are an adult already
Keeping a tiger incurs monthly expenses of about 10,000 baht, so it is not profitable for the illegal traders to keep them alive once they reach maturity.
division - one part of a large organisation
identified - named ระบุชื่อ
targets - goals or levels you plan to achieve
effort - an attempt to do something; the energy and enthusiasm that people put into an activity ความพยายาม
curb - to control or limit something that is harmful ระงับ, ควบคุม
affiliation - the groups you belong to
political affiliations - the political groups that you belong to
speak up - say something about something that people need to talk about (not remain silent like most people)
Pol Col Atthapol's division has identified several targets in Chiang Mai, Chaiyaphum, Ubon Ratchathani, Chon Buri, Sa Kaeo, Prachin Buri, Nakhon Nayok and Saraburi in its effort to curb the trade. He said these targets are connected and financed by the same investors with close political affiliations. "It's time to speak up. The longer I work, the more I feel for these animals. It's time for us to act," he said.
linked - connected เชื่อมโยง เกี่ยวกับ
He said the arrest of Anucha Sae Ma in Bangkok's Khlong Sam Wa district and confiscation of 400kg of tiger meat along with carcasses and parts of other wild animals early last month is linked to an illegal zoo in Chaiyaphum which was raided in September.
raid - when police enter a building suddenly with force, looking for criminals ใช้กำลังเข้าค้นสถานที่หรือ จับกุมคนร้าย เข้าตรวจค้น บุกเข้าจับ เข้าบุก
impounded - taken away by the police ยึดไว้เป็นของกลาง
In that raid, two leopard cubs were impounded. It was estimated that together they would have fetched 1-1.5 million baht if sold to overseas buyers.
animal shelter - a place that takes care of animals that do not have a home (See Wikipedia)
site - a place where something happened ที่เกิดเหตุ สถานที่
designated - formally chosen for something แต่งตั้ง ที่ได้รับการแต่งตั้ง marked, separated, or give a name for a particular purpose ถูกกำหนด
licence - official permission from government to do a business or some activity ใบอนุญาต
provide - to give someone something that they want or need
Regarding the raid of the private animal shelter in Kaeng Khoi district, Pol Lt Col Atthapol said the site had been designated as a new private zoo, but the owner had not yet obtained a licence from the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department and could not provide documents to show where he had obtained the animals.
commander - a police offer of high rank ผู้บังคับบัญชา
stamp out - end, stop
stamp out the illegal wildlife trade.
Pol Maj Gen Narasak Hemnithi, commander of Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division, said authorities would work harder to stamp out the illegal wildlife trade.
complaints - when people say there is something wrong and they want it changed
lodge complaint -
field agent -
target - make into a goal เป้าหมาย
trace - to discover the cause or origin of something by examining the way in which it has developed สืบหาร่องรอย to follow the evidence to find out something ตามรอย ตามทาง to follow the same route or path that someone else used before ตามรอย ตามทาง
illicit - against the law ผิดกฎหมาย
illicit trade
trace the illicit trade
He said the agency will no longer rely on complaints to be lodged before acting. Field agents will be used in the target areas to trace the illicit trade, he said.
approach - a way of doing or dealing with something การจัดการกับปัญหา วิธีการทำให้ถึงจุดหมาย
strictly - completely, exactly อย่างเข้มงวด
go strictly by the book - follow the rules exactly
trafficking of wildlife - transporting and buying and selling illegal wildlife
"Our approach will be similar to the war on drugs," he said. Pol Maj Gen Narasak said corruption is at the heart of the illegal trade and trafficking of wildlife. In combating the crime, he will go strictly by the book
racket - an illegal activity that earns money การหาเงินโดยผิดกฎหมาย
thrives - do well, be successful and strong
ignore - to pay no attention to something; to pretend that you have not noticed or do not know about something เพิกเฉย ทำเพิกเฉย
urged - requested them to do, begged them to do; advised someone very strongly about what action should be taken วิงวอน
concerns - worries ความกังวล
hotline - a telephone number that people can call for information โทรศัพท์สายตรงที่จัดไว้สำหรับเหตุเร่งด่วนหรือเฉพาะเรื่อง
"The racket thrives because of the involvement of state officials. They are blinded by something and ignore the illegal activity," he said. He also urged those who have concerns or information about wildlife trade and trafficking to call the division hotline on 1136.
