NCJ Number
225967
Date Published
April 2008
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This report of the meeting of the Open-ended Expert Group on International Cooperation in Preventing and Combating Illicit International Trafficking in Forest Products in 2008 provides an account of the discussions of the Expert Group on the economic, social, and environmental impact of the crimes under consideration and the appropriate legal and law enforcement responses to curb such crimes.
Abstract
The Expert Group concluded (1) that there was an urgent need to expand knowledge of the scope and scale of the problems created by illicit international trafficking in forest products, (2) it was important to gain a common understanding of such problems as a prerequisite to more coherent and consistent action at the national interregional levels, (3) the rationalization and streamlining of applicable laws and regulations at the national level was an essential precondition for effective forest law enforcement and governance, (4) forest law enforcement responses could best be enhanced through the development of improved detection methods, the establishment of specialized enforcement units at the domestic level, the availability of direct channels of communication, and the creation of networks for information-sharing, (5) efficient preventive policies in the field of forest crime should include the organization of educational campaigns and the development of public information material to raise public awareness and support forest law enforcement action, (6) the implementation of national strategies and policies, (7) international cooperation in criminal matters related to illicit international trafficking in forest products, (8) strengthening cooperation at all levels, with emphasis on regional cooperation, (9) undertaking technical assistance activities to upgrade skills and capacities of competent officials and institutions to deal with the related challenges, and (10) illicit international trafficking in timber and forest and biological resources was an issue that affected most countries with a high rate of forest cover and was linked to the misappropriation of genetic resources and illicit trafficking of those resources. The meeting of the Open-ended Expert Group on International Cooperation in Preventing and Combating Illicit International Trafficking in Forest Products was held in Jakarta in March 2008.