20 July 2011: Governments, international organizations and NGOs convened to discuss illegal trade of flora and fauna at the 11th Asian Regional Partners Forum on Combating Environmental Crime (ARPEC), organized by the Regional Centre of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in East Asia and the Pacific, under the auspices of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).

At the meeting, held 13-14 July 2011 in Bangkok, Thailand, participants discussed the critical role of intelligence-sharing and media management in fighting organized environmental crime in Asian countries.

Participants emphasized that a key to defeating crimes against the environment is building an effective, pro-active response by developing a culture of intelligence-sharing among law enforcement agencies around the world. A series of presentations on intelligence-sharing by Interpol, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) Wildlife Enforcement Network and the Regional Intelligence Liaison Office – Asia and Pacific prompted participants to recommend that every enforcement agency make the sharing of criminal intelligence a top priority. The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), FREELAND Foundation, the Wildlife Crime and Control Bureau (India) and the Environmental Investigation Agency highlighted their experiences in using coverage of criminal incidents to raise public awareness on the consequences of crimes against animals and the environment.

The meeting also provided an opportunity to introduce the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC), a partnership of the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), INTERPOL, UNODC, the World Bank and the World Customs Organization (WCO). The next ARPEC meeting will convene in Bangkok at the end of 2011. [UNODC News]