The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA),
African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) and the International Fund for Animal Welfare
(IFAW) today began a three-day Wildlife
Judicial and Prosecutorial Assistance Training in Kampala. Magistrates,
prosecutors and members of Uganda’s police and customs authority are attending
the training, the theme of which is “Strengthening Wildlife Law
Enforcement through Judicial Interventions.”
“The conservation of
wildlife and all other natural resources in Uganda requires concerted efforts
from all relevant stakeholders. The prosecution of wildlife crime involves
several stakeholders for success to be achieved and all the stakeholders play a
fundamental role and without the cooperation of any of the stakeholders, a case
cannot be successfully prosecuted. The police have to investigate a crime, the
office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) sanctions and prosecutes,
the judiciary determines the case and hands a verdict and passes appropriate
sentence which is administered by the prisons. These are all independent
institutions that must play a role for the successful prosecution of wildlife
crime cases. UWA values the contribution of all these institutions among others
and appeals to them to support the efforts of conservation for the benefit of
the present and future generations of this country and the global
community," said Chemonges M. Sabilla, Deputy Director, Legal and
Corporate Affairs at Uganda Wildlife Authority.
Among other objectives of
the training, attendees will gain a clearer perspective about wildlife crime in
Uganda, and identify and overcome weaknesses in investigative and prosecutorial
processes aimed at combating wildlife crime.
‘Wildlife law
enforcement officers including the investigators, prosecutors and those in the
judiciary are important actors in ensuring that Africa’s wildlife resource –
species and habitats – is secured in the first place; then we can apply these
resources to the sustainable development agenda of our countries,” said Dr.
Philip Muruthi, Vice President of Species Conservation at African Wildlife
Foundation
“To combat wildlife
trafficking there is an urgent need for strengthening of collaborative agencies
including law enforcement and judiciary not only in Uganda but regionally.
There is also a need to enhance intelligence gathering and sharing of
information amongst officers to enhance the chances of arrest of perpetrators
of wildlife crime and guarantee their prosecution and appropriate punishment.
This capacity building workshop is an integral step in forming linkages or
networks that allow for structured and sustained coordination and
collaboration,” said James Isiche, Regional Director IFAW East Africa.
Uganda and neighbours -
Kenya and Tanzania–were named in 2013 along with five other countries by CITES
as playing a primary role in the illegal wildlife trade, whether as source,
transit or demand countries for illegal wildlife products. Uganda serves as a
major transit hub in the wildlife supply chain, with ivory and other wildlife
products seized by authorities moving toward ports in Kenya and Tanzania. The
CITES Standing Committee insisted that Uganda and the other “gang of eight”
countries must develop clear targets for reducing trade in ivory and other
wildlife products or face trade sanctions. Since then, Uganda has started to
take key steps in order to curb poaching and trafficking of wildlife.
The training is part of a
larger program called the Horn of Africa Wildlife Crime Prevention Program,
which is funded by the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands and implemented in partnership with the IUCN NL (National Committee
of The Netherlands) and the Horn of Africa Regional Environment Centre and
Network. This two-year programme aims to prevent and combat wildlife crime in
the Horn of Africa, which is emerging as a major region and hotspot for
wildlife crime worldwide, both as a source and a transit route for illicit
trafficking of wildlife products. Additional support was provided by AWF.
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