Wildlife Trade Research Paper

6.1.1 Illegal wildlife Trade:

Endangered wildlife trust state that “International wildlife trade is estimated to be worth billions of dollars and includes hundreds of millions of plant and animal spe-cies are high and the trade in them, together with other factors, such as habitat loss, is capable of heavily depleting their populations and even bringing some species close extinction. Many wildlife species being traded are not threatened, but the ex-istence of an agreement to ensure the sustainability of trade is important in order to safeguard these resources for the future. The trade in wild animals and plants crosses international borders, and therefore the effort to regulate it requires interna-tional cooperation to safeguard certain species

It is characterized by multiple layers of militarization, from the ground to the skies, and enabled by a range of ac-tors, including rangers, soldiers, military leaders, and military firms, both public and private. It also emerges from what is essentially an arms race between poachers and anti-poaching forces; as each side becomes more sophisticated and potentially le-thal via militarized methods and technologies the other follows suit to keep up” green militarization’, p. 817. Ibid. p 818. The South African state has responded to rhino poaching with a comprehensive, multipronged approach. This includes part-nerships and disciplinary mechanisms with end-user countries in Asia to reduce demand, with the Mozambican government to compel it to strengthen anti-poaching efforts, and with South African communities to prevent their involvement in Park (GLTP). Rhino poaching has raised profound concerns within and beyond South Africa. Most obviously, there is fear for the future of the species. Rhino poaching, moreover, threatens “the reputation, eco-tourism industry, and the public image of South Africa” (Department of Environmental Affairs 2010, 4). Rhino poaching addi-tionally poses grave threats to those responsible for the animals’ protection, includ-ing the trade. Other efforts involve intelligence gathering, bringing down criminal syndicates, closing syndicate exploited loopholes in the legal hunting of rhino, insti-tuting extensive jail terms, and exploring the legalization of the trade in rhino horn (Interviews 2009, 2012, 2013; Emslie, Milliken, and Talukdar 2012). Within Kruger, however, the state response amounts primarily to the intensive and multilayered mil-itarization of the park, which is often seen as offering a more immediate response to rhino poaching than many of the approaches previously discussed (Interviews