UN unanimously adopts resolution to combat illegal wildlife trafficking

In the wake of last month’s public outrage at the death of Cecil the Lion, the United Nations has taken a ‘historic’ step forward on the issue of animal poaching...

In a rare show of unanimous support, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution that commits countries to increase their collective efforts to address wildlife poaching...

The resolution, which is called Tackling the Illicit Trafficking in Wildlife, was put forward by Gabon and Germany. One of the key objectives of the plan is to ensure that UN member states crack down on the illicit criminal organizations that profit in the trafficking of protected species of animals and plants.

In a statement, John Scanlon, the secretary-general of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) said: “This resolution reflects the heightened level of political concern over the devastating impacts of poaching and illegal trade in wildlife. It is particularly important in strengthening the political resolve to combat these serious crimes.”

While the statements about political resolve are strong, the caveat to this agreement is that it is not legally binding. As such, it relies on actions to be implemented by individual national governments...

This has been excerpted from the 21 August 2015 article by Yahoo! News.