Good Internet, Bad People
The downside of the Internet is that often the few who have no scruples don’t hesitate to exploit the online sale portal network when possible. It’s an abuse of the Internet age that sales of tropical birds, protected wildlife, and substances like coral and other natural flora and fauna are vended illegally.
According to recent reports, the Internet has emerged as one of the greatest threats to rare animal and plant species, fueling the illegal wildlife trade and rare substance market. From medical uses to ornamental display, the Intenret has made it easier to buy everything from live baby lions to wine made from tiger bones.
A body of concerned conservationists and law enforcement officers made statements to the media Sunday. But for a long time the domaining community has known that rogue vendors and scammers are a law unto themselves. Even hosting companies allow a 30-day disconnect when notified of such illegal material sales.
The Web’s impact was made clear at the meeting of the 175-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, or CITES. Delegates voted overwhelmingly Sunday to ban the trade of the Kaiser’s spotted newt, which the World Wildlife Fund says has been devastated by the Internet trade. Iranian newts have been sold so volubly online their number has shrunk to one fifth its natural population(200).
“The Internet is becoming the dominant factor overall in the global trade in protected species,” he said. “There will come a time when country to country trade of large shipments between big buyers and big sellers in different countries is a thing of the past.”
What happens when a country like Japan decides to cement its economy selling bluefin tuna and Mediterranean coral? The internet becomes a portal to vend goods in a manner that defeats ecologically sound practices and methods. To think that the Internet has supported tiger farms and tiger deaths because internet vending has encouraged tiger encroachment is stunning.
The IFAW has done several surveys of illegal trade on the Web and a three-month survey in 2008 found more than 7,000 species worth $3.8 million sold on auction sites, classified ads and chat rooms, mostly in the United States but also Europe, China, Russia and Australia.Many such sites, even Ebay, can let such forbidden or illegal sales through the cracks.
Most of what is traded is illegal African ivory but the group has also found exotic birds along with rare products such as tiger-bone wine and pelts from protected species like polar bears and leopards. Such sales often take place under false labels and mislabeled import statements.
A separate 2009 survey by the group Campaign Against the Cruelty to Animals targeted the Internet trade in Ecuador, finding offers to sell live capuchin monkeys, lion cubs and ocelots. Conscientious domainers should police themselves and support a community of moral and ethical trading and move toward a community of standards which voluntarily do not cross globally established cultural and natural species protection norms.
