A training course on wildlife
trafficking prevention was held on June 1 for staff at Noi Bai
International Airport with the funding from the US Agency for
International Development (USAID).
During the workshop, 70 airport personnel including check-in counter
attendants, baggage handlers, customs officers, immigration staff and
security officials, were provided with the latest developments of the
illegal wildlife trade in the world and its impacts.
They also studied the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, relevant national legislation,
smuggling techniques, species identification and the handling of
confiscations.
This was the eighth training course of its kind in Southeast Asia . The
courses have been held for more than 1,100 participants throughout the
region, most recently at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in
Bangkok, Thailand and the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in
Malaysia .
The course has been built for airports around the world and particularly
those in Southest Asia since they have been found to become common
points of transit for the illegally smuggled animals.
“It’s time to put a stop to criminals using our airports to smuggle
protected and endangered species,” said Nguyen Ngoc Binh, Deputy
Director General of Vietnam’s Directorate of Forestry.
Illegal wildlife trafficking within Vietnam has continuously been on
the rise with criminals getting more cunning and professional, making it
hard for authoritative agencies to detect and control, said an official
from the Cu Chi Wildlife Rescue Centre in Ho Chi Minh City .
The centre on May 31 handed over a rare leopard with the scientific name
of panthera pardus to the Cat Tien National Park in Dong Nai
province.
The female leopard was rescued two years ago from illegal captivity. It
will lated be released to the jungle.
The Cu Chi Rescue Centre has since 2006 saved 2,000 individuals of 39
species, many of which are invaluable, rare species listed in the red
book./.