The ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN-WEN) was highlighted as a major law enforcement tool in tiger conservation in the "Hua Hin Declaration" - the consensus made at the first-ever Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation in Hua Hin, Thailand last week. The declaration emphasizes the urgent need of networks like ASEAN-WEN as mechanisms to intensify trans-border cooperation on wildlife law enforcement to prevent poaching and illegal trade of wild tigers and tiger parts, and also to help accelerate implementation of tiger conservation programs.

The Hua Hin Conference is an important milestone on the road to the Tiger Conservation Forum in Vladivostok, Russian Federation, in September 2010, and builds on commitments made in the Pattaya Manifesto on Combating Wildlife Crime in Asia (April, 2009) and the Kathmandu Recommendations (October, 2009).

Cover of the Pattaya Manifesto
on Combating Wildlife Crime in Asia
(document for download here)

The road to the Tiger Summit in Vladivostok 2010 began with an International Technical Workshop on Arresting Wildlife Depletion in Asia, held in Pattaya, Thailand in April, 2009. The resulting Manifesto on Combating Wildlife Crime includes 15 recommendations focusing on initiatives for the prevention of poaching, reduction in global demand for illegal wildlife and derivative products, as well as increasing public awareness. It also cites the ASEAN-WEN as a model for the establishment of a South-Asia WEN, which could help connect and coordinate conservation efforts between key tiger range states.
The Global Tiger Workshop in Kathmandu, Nepal, which followed in October 2009, recommended smart infrastructure around tiger habitats, zero-tolerance of infrastructure and development projects in core tiger habitats, expanded on recommendations to empower local communities to reduce tiger poaching, innovative funding for tiger conservation projects and the improvement of law enforcement agencies and initiatives, including the ASEAN-WEN.

Now, the Hua Hin Declaration focuses on landscape management, sustainable financing of conservation projects and on international law enforcement activities and illegal trade, community development and securing critical tiger habitats. In Hua Hin, Thailand’s Minister of Environment and Natural Resources Suwit Khunkitti committed long-term funding for the ASEAN-WEN. Other ASEAN member countries were also appealed to for investment to ensure the network’s sustainability and enhance its ability to perform a vital role in the international law enforcement community's efforts to protect global biodiversity.
 

Thailand's Minister Khun Suwit Khunkitti and Russia's representative on their road to the Tiger Summit in Vladivostok, September 2010.
(photo credit: DNP, Thailand)

The pledges and recommendations made at these key meetings will be used to develop National Action Plans for approval prior to the Vladivostok Summit in September 2010, where Tiger Range countries are expected to create a Global Tiger Stabilization and Recovery Support Program to save the iconic species. If wild tigers and their habitat can be protected, many other endangered species also stand to benefit.

The ASEAN-WEN continues to play a major role in wildlife law enforcement capacity building and cooperation in Southeast Asia, as well as connecting the region with other international efforts and initiatives. The ASEAN-WEN is helping to facilitate and guide international efforts to increase protection for wild tigers and welcomes the growing support and commitments of all stakeholders participating in the ongoing dialogue and planning ahead of the Tiger Conservation Forum in Vladivostok this year.