Thailand on the front line against illegal wildlife trafficking

He heads a unit of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Flora (DNP) charged with combating widespread trafficking, from African elephant ivory to monkeys destined to become pets or to be the subject of laboratory experiments.

Alongside arms, drugs and human trafficking, the illegal wildlife trade is one of the most widespread and lucrative forms of organized crime in the world, operated by cross-border networks.

A country ravaged by animal trafficking

Thailand is in a special position due to its abundance of wildlife, the availability of rare species in neighboring countries and its accessibility by sea, air and land.

The DNP created a dedicated wildlife crime intelligence unit, the WCU, in 2023, made up of three permanent officers tasked with spotting and intercepting illegal purchases.

They spend a large part of their time scanning social networks, which have become “the main channel” for animal trafficking, explains its director, Polawee Buchakiet.

Traffickers often talk about animals needing a “new home,” rather than explicitly offering them for sale, and post heavily cropped images to avoid revealing their location.

Field action to save animals

But WCU has undercover agents capable of finding them. One of them, nicknamed “Tee,” once climbed electrical poles, disguised as a repairman to take photos above a wall, evidence needed to obtain court warrants.

He remains haunted by cases where sellers could not be located, or when the team arrived too late, finding only animals dead or so weakened that they died soon after.

“I sometimes wonder if we could have done something to arrive sooner,” says Tee, 43. “Whether animals are big or small, all lives are precious.”

Animals rescued in time have the right to a second life

Only six months old, the little langur curled up in the gloved hand of DNP veterinarian Thanawadee Phaichana is tiny.

He was intercepted in luggage at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, bound for India, where demand for exotic animals as pets is rising.

A second monkey found in the same bag died after being rescued. “Most of these animals are in very poor condition. Some are given sedatives or even light anesthesia to prevent them from moving or making noise,” says Thanawadee.

Animals rescued in or around Bangkok are often transferred to the DNP's small center for first aid, before being sent to a sanctuary.

Older and healthier people can sometimes return to the wild, but younger people struggle to learn the skills needed to survive.

Also read: A young woman arrested at Bangkok airport with 30 turtles under her clothes

Thailand toughens its tone against traffickers

Wildlife traffickers face up to 10 years in prison for crimes involving protected species, and 15 years for endangered species.

Several large-scale operations have taken place recently, including one in July which saved a langur, a gibbon and hundreds of turtles. But many fall through the cracks.

A Thai court in 2019 dropped charges against Boonchai Bach, considered a wildlife trafficking kingpin. The Supreme Court later sentenced him to prison, but he remains untraceable.

WCU also faces lack of cooperation from social media platforms and chronic staffing and funding shortages.