TRAFFIC CITES IMPLEMENTATION IN THAILANDR E P O R T

NOVEMBER 2016

A review of the legal regime governing the tradein great apes and gibbons and other CITES-listed
species

Patricia Moore, Chanokporn Prompinchompoo and Claire A. Beastall

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

ATRAFFIC REPORTTRAFFIC, the wild­life trade monitoringnet­work, is the leading non-governmentalorganization working globally on trade inwild animals and plants in the context of bothbiodiversity conservation and sustainable
development. TRAFFIC is a strategic alliance ofWWF and IUCN.
Reprod­uction of material appearing in thisreport requires written­permission fromthe publisher.
The designations of geographical entities inthis publication, and the presentation of thematerial, do not imply the expression of any
opinion whatsoever on the part of TRAFFIC
or its supporting ­organizations con­cern­ing
the legal status of any country, territory, or
area, or of its authorities, or concerning thedelimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
The views of the authors expressed in thispublication are those of the writers and do notnecessarily reflect those of TRAFFIC,
WWF or IUCN.
Published by TRAFFIC.
Southeast Asia Regional Office
Unit 3-2, 1st Floor, Jalan SS23/11
Taman SEA, 47400 Petaling Jaya
Selangor, Malaysia
Telephone : (603) 7880 3940
Fax : (603) 7882 0171
Copyright of material published in this report
is vested in TRAFFIC.
© TRAFFIC 2016.
ISBN no: 978-983-3393-65-7
UK Registered Charity No. 1076722.
Suggested citation: Moore, P.,
Prompinchompoo, C., and Beastall, C.A.
(2016). CITES Implementation in Thailand:
A review of the legal regime governing thetrade in great apes and gibbons and other
CITES-listed species. TRAFFIC. Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia.
Front cover photograph: An orangutan
Credit: Ronald Van Der Beek/Dreamstime.

CITES IMPLEMENTATION IN
THAILANDA review of the legal regime governing the tradein great apes and gibbons and other CITES-listed
species© Ronald Van Der Beek/Dreamstime.com

Patricia Moore, Chanokporn Prompinchompoo,
Claire A. Beastall

An orangutan© Claire Beastall/TRAFFIC

D TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abbreviations and Acronymsiii

Acknowledgementsiii

Executive Summaryiv

Introduction

1

Methods

3

Results

4

Institutional jurisdiction

4

WARPA provisions governing the trade in non-native
species (with a primary concentration on species of apes)

4

Onus on proof of illegal import of wildlife

8

Repatriation procedures

9

Existing legislation which might be used to regulate theillegal trade in CITES-listed species:

10

Civil and Commercial Code10

Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code

11

Export, Import of Goods Act, B.E. 2522 (1979),
as amended to B.E. 2558 (2015)11

Customs Act B.E. 2469 (1926), as amended up to
B.E. 2557 (2014)12

Anti-Participation in Transnational Organized
Crime Act, B.E. 2556 (2013)13

Anti-Money Laundering Act B.E. 2542 (1999),
as amended up to B.E. 2558 (2015)14

National Park Act B.E. 2504 (1961),
as amended to B.E. 2532 (1989)

15

Conclusions

17

Recommendations

17

Annex: WARPA and Thailand's protection of CITES-listed,
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand
non-native fauna species

ii
20

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS
AMLA.......................................................Anti-Money Laundering Act B.E. 2542 (1999), as amended 		
up to B.E. 2558 (2015)
AMLO.......................................................Anti-Money Laundering Office
APTOCA..................................................Anti-Participation in Transnational Organized Crime Act, 		
B.E. 2556 (2013)
ASEAN-WEN..........................................Association of Southeast Asian Nations Wildlife Enforcement
Network
CITES........................................................Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species ofWild Fauna and Flora
DNP...........................................................Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant 			Conservation
MoNRE.....................................................Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment
THB...........................................................Thai baht
USD...........................................................United States dollars
WARPA.....................................................Wild Animal Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2535 		
(1992), as amended to B.E. 2557 (2014)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like to thank Mr Tir Srinopnikon for his assistance in reviewing this report. They
would also like to mention the assistance received from the staff of TRAFFIC in Southeast Asia,
particularly, Chris R. Shepherd, Regional Director, Southeast Asia, Kanitha Krishnasamy, Elizabeth
John and Aqeela Abdul Jalil and members of TRAFFIC’s global team, Teresa Mulliken, James
Compton, Sabri Zain, Charity Payton, Stephanie Pendry and Richard Thomas. Our gratitude also
goes to the ARCUS Foundation for generously funding this work.

iii TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This review of Thailand’s regulatory framework governing the trade in species of fauna listed in the
Appendices of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna andFlora (CITES) focuses on ape species, four of which are native to Thailand (White-handed Gibbon
Hylobates lar, Agile Gibbon H. agilis, Pileated Gibbon H. pileatus and Siamang Symphalangus
syndactylus) and included in CITES Appendix I. However, the underlying issues relating to trade
in ape species are the same for other species listed in each of CITES' three Appendices. The review
includes an analysis of the loopholes which currently hamper Thailand’s full implementation of
CITES and makes recommendations for changes in the proposed amendment to the Wild Animal
Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2535 (1992) (WARPA) which would allow these to be
overcome.
CITES requires that its Parties take appropriate measures to enforce the provisions of theConvention and prohibit trade in specimens in violation of them. Thailand became a Party in1983 and in 1992 enacted WARPA to provide for the implementation and enforcement of theConvention. WARPA is the main law applicable to wildlife, but other national laws and regulations
also directly and indirectly govern aspects of the trade in CITES-listed species. These include thecivil and criminal codes, the Customs Act, the Export, Import of Goods Act, the Anti-Money
Laundering Act (AMLA), and the Anti-Participation in Transnational Organized Crime Act(APTOCA).
Among the measures required by CITES is the establishment of at least one Management Authority
and one Scientific Authority. The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation(DNP) of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) fulfills both of these roles.
CITES also requires that Parties “penalize trade in, or possession of illegally-traded specimens” and“provide for the confiscation or return to the State of export of such specimens” (CITES Article VIII.
1(a)-(b)).
Although WARPA is sufficient to deal with some aspects of illegal wildlife trade, there are a numberof areas where it fails to address significant issues. WARPA’s definition of “trade” is inconsistent with
the CITES definition, which includes import, export, re-export and introduction from the sea. The
WARPA definition only includes import, export and transit. WARPA has been amended twice, butdoes not yet regulate possession of most non-native species, even if those species are CITES-listed.
WARPA includes a list of 15 preserved species, the animals listed as protected are included in two
regulations issued under the Act. As of 2015, 1320 taxa, largely listed as species or subspecies, areprotected under WARPA. Nine vertebrate taxa are listed at a higher taxonomic level (order, family
and genus) and comprise over 6000 species; more than 2000 of which are CITES-listed (Annex).
In total, WARPA protects less than half of CITES-listed taxa. Excluding the invertebrates listed at
higher taxonomic levels (corals, sea fans and giant clams), WARPA includes just 12 non-native,
CITES-listed species (seven mammals, one bird, three reptiles and one butterfly).
Thailand is home to four ape species (White-handed Gibbon Hylobates lar, Agile Gibbon H. agilis,
Pileated Gibbon H. pileatus and Siamang Symphalangus syndactylus) and all are listed as protectedunder WARPA. The six species of great ape and 11 non-native gibbon species listed under CITES are
not listed under WARPA.
WARPA’s list of taxa to which the Act applies has remained largely unaltered since it was issued.
In contrast, the CITES Appendices are subject to change to reflect new listings and revisions intaxonomy, most significantly after each Conference of the Parties, held every two or three years.
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailandiv

Ideally, CITES-enabling legislation should include the CITES Appendices in their entirety and apply
to all subsequent revisions.
Although WARPA does require that licences are obtained for the import, export and transit throughThailand of CITES-listed species, irrespective of whether they are included in the Act, there are
no regulations which cover the possession of specimens of species that are not protected underthe Act. This omission seriously hampers Thailand’s ability to impose any control on domestic
trade in illegally imported, non-native, CITES-listed wildlife. Anyone found in possession of such
wildlife does not currently have to show how they acquired it; rather the State must prove that the
animals were illegally imported in order to be able to take any subsequent enforcement action.
Because WARPA omits most non-native CITES-listed species from domestic protection, Thailand
is virtually unable to control any trade, international and domestic, in such specimens. A similarloophole previously existed in Peninsular Malaysia relating to non-native turtle and tortoise species,
but was closed some years ago. The proposed amendment to Thailand’s WARPA needs to close thisparticular loophole, as well as others.
The issue of confiscation and repatriation of confiscated specimens is also unclear under current
legislation, which has resulted in delayed repatriation proceedings. An example is the case of
11 orangutans found at the side of a road in 2009 in Thailand, which were only repatriated toIndonesia, their country of origin, in 2015. Where property, including living wildlife is found andno owner can be identified, under current law the State is required to retain such property for five
years.
A comprehensive amendment to WARPA was made available for public comment in 2012; theamendment process was still ongoing in 2016. This review by TRAFFIC contains a number ofrecommendations of amendments to that draft which would enable Thailand to tackle the illegal
trade in endangered species more effectively.
Recommendations:This study examined WARPA and its proposed amendment in light of provisions in othernational laws and regulations that directly and indirectly govern wildlife trade in Thailand. The
recommendations presented here are made in reference to the draft amendment to WARPA. They
refer only to the specific issues involved with possession of and trade in non-native CITES-listed
species that are not protected in Thailand.
a. The current definition of “trade” in WARPA does not include re-export and introduction fromthe sea.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to WARPA to add the words “re-export andintroduction from the sea” to the definition of “trade” and make the WARPA definition
consistent with CITES.
b.

Non-native CITES-listed wildlife is not currently protected in Thailand, with the exceptionof 11 vertebrate species. The current draft amendment to WARPA would not list non-native
species as preserved or protected species in Thailand, but would prohibit possessing, importing,exporting, transiting, and trading, without a licence, all species listed under international
agreements. Those prohibitions will not be effective until the Minister issues a notification.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to specify that when the Minister issues
notifications concerning species listed in any international agreement to which Thailand is a
Party, the notification must apply the lists in their entirety by reference to them. The first
notification applying the CITES Appendices must apply to all subsequent revisions to the
Appendices.

v

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

c. The current draft amendment to WARPA would allow hunting of preserved and protectedwildlife as well as CITES-listed species, as long as the hunter has a licence from DNP.
Recommendation: Revise this to specify that the hunting of species listed in CITES Appendix I
is prohibited and that licences for hunting species listed in CITES Appendices II and III may
only be issued on confirmation that the animal or animals hunted will only be used for the
purpose of captive breeding or scientific exchange with a licenced research institution.
d. There is no provision in the current draft amendment to WARPA that provides for de-listing a
species as preserved or protected in Thailand.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to stipulate that the Minister must document
the scientific evidence that a species is no longer endangered, and make that documentation
publicly available, before issuing a notification to de-list it.
e. Currently, the State must prove that anyone who possesses non-native, CITES-listed wildlife has
acquired that wildlife illegally.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to stipulate that, unless there is evidence oflegal import or export, there is a presumption that unlicenced possession of non-native, CITESlisted wildlife is a product of, or for the purpose of, illegal trade unless the person with
unlicenced possession of such wildlife proves otherwise beyond a reasonable doubt, and that
DNP must co-ordinate with AMLO and officials appointed under APTOCA to make inquiries
for eventual prosecution under those Acts, in addition to penalties under WARPA. This would
be constitutionally defensible on the basis that protection of endangered wildlife is in the public
interest.
f.

The Civil and Commercial Code applies to repatriation of non-native wildlife that is seized andconfiscated by the State when there is no criminal prosecution, which means that there may be
a delay of one to five years before such wildlife may be repatriated. The Criminal Code provides
a one-year waiting period after the final decision of a court to allow a rightful owner to claim
forfeited property if the State still holds it.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to specify that there is a presumption that
unlicenced non-native wildlife is a product of, or is destined for, illegal international trade andthat when a government official seizes or collects unlicenced non-native wildlife DNP must
immediately request a court to order that it is vested in the State. Once such wildlife is vested in
the State, DNP should immediately begin the process of determining the country of origin andwhere this involves living animals, make contact with the appropriate officials in that country to
determine whether repatriation is possible.

g. In most cases in current practice, wildlife officials follow the exception to the rules of evidence
that the Criminal Procedure Code provides and submit a report in lieu of presenting seizedwildlife in court as the physical evidence for any eventual criminal prosecution.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to add a clause stipulating that wheneverunlicenced, non-native, CITES-listed wildlife is found, under any circumstances, whether anowner can be identified or not, it is presumed to be in Thailand illegally. In such cases, theprovisions of the Criminal Procedure Code that govern evidence must apply. Officials must
immediately document the wildlife as physical evidence as required for a criminal prosecution
and where this involves living animals should then initiate the procedure to repatriate thewildlife where appropriate.
h. Criminal penalties under WARPA are low. Under the draft amendment to WARPA, penalties
for illegal import, export, transit and possession of CITES-listed wildlife would be 3–10 years
imprisonment and a fine of THB60 000–200 000 (USD1727–5755), or both. The minimum
term of imprisonment for a crime under AMLA is only one year, less than the proposed
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailandvi

minimum penalty under the WARPA amendment, which would make AMLA a potentially lessattractive option for prosecuting illegal wildlife traffickers. Maximum and minimum fines under
APTOCA would still be higher than the penalties under the WARPA amendment.
Recommendations: (1) Revise the draft amendment to include transit, transport and storage ofunlicenced CITES-listed species; (2) Before finalizing the penalty provisions in the proposed
WARPA amendment, MoNRE should consider all options for penalties for illegal wildlife
trafficking available under all applicable laws currently in force and harmonize penalty
provisions to ensure maximum potential for punishing those responsible for wildlife trafficking
at all levels of the crime.
The National Wildlife Preservation and Protection Committee that WARPA created has
supervisory powers but no enforcement powers. The National Wildlife Committee that the
proposed amended WARPA would create would not have a representative from the Department
of Foreign Trade and its supervisory functions would be even more limited than those of
the current Committee. It appears that DNP officers, at least at the technical level, are largely
unaware of AMLA and APTOCA and the potential for using those laws in co-ordination with
WARPA to control illegal wildlife trade.
Recommendations: (1) Include an article in the amended WARPA that explicitly recognizes
the Thailand-WEN Committee and its role in preventing wildlife trafficking and prosecuting
traffickers; (2) Revise of the proposed WARPA amendment to ensure that the powers
and duties of the National Wildlife Committee and those of the Thailand-WEN Committee
complement each other and that the National Wildlife Committee has the duty to co-ordinate
closely with the Thailand-WEN.

j.

Laws and regulations that directly and indirectly affect control of trade in CITES species areadministered by several different authorities, not only the DNP.
Recommendation: Before finalizing the amendment to WARPA a comprehensive review of theprovisions in the proposed amendment should be conducted to identify any overlap and/or
conflict with those in other national laws and regulations. Changes can then be made in theamendment to ensure that it is in harmony with existing laws and regulations and is clear andconsistent in the application of the law and the imposition of deterrent penalties.

© Hayden Bird/ Dreamstime.com

i.

vii TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

INTRODUCTION
Thailand became a Party to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1983. Parties to CITES are required to ensure that their domestic
legislation is sufficient to enforce the Convention, which must include penalties for possessionof and/or trade in specimens traded in violation of the Convention (see Box 1). Concern overthe continued decline of great ape populations led to a CITES resolution on the conservationof and trade in great apes (Resolution Conf. 13.4 (Rev. CoP16)) which urges all Parties to adopt
comprehensive legislation to protect these species (see Box 2).
In 1992, Thailand enacted the Wild Animal Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2535 (WARPA) to
implement its CITES obligations. WARPA requires a licence to import, transit, and export wildlife,and regulates the possession of animals that are protected under Thai law. Although WARPA has
been amended twice, in 2003 and 2014, it does not yet regulate possession of most non-native
species, even if those species are CITES-listed (the annex to this report contains an analysis of thosespecies which are included in and under WARPA, their origins and CITES status). This means that
there is no legal basis in Thailand for controlling the domestic trade in non-native, CITES-listed
wildlife, once traffickers succeed in getting the animals into the country. Non-native, CITES-listed
wild animals are openly sold and kept in Thailand because national law does not regulate possessingthem.
Box 1: Text of the Convention“Article VIII - Measures to Be Taken by the Parties
1. The Parties shall take appropriate measures to enforce the provisions of the present Convention and toprohibit trade in specimens in violation thereof. These shall include measures:a) To penalize trade in, or possession of, such specimens, or both; andb) To provide for the confiscation or return to the State of export of such specimens.”“Article XIV - Effect on Domestic Legislation and International Conventions
1. The provisions of the present Convention shall in no way affect the right of Parties to adopt:a) Stricter domestic measures regarding the conditions for trade, taking, possession or transport ofspecimens of species included in Appendices I, II and III, or the complete prohibition 		
thereof; orb) Domestic measures restricting or prohibiting trade, taking, possession or transport 		of species not included in Appendix I, II or III.”Box 2: Resolution Conf. 13.4 (Rev. CoP16)
Conservation of and trade in Great Apes URGES all Parties to:a) adopt and implement comprehensive legislation to protect great apes, which includes:
i. a prohibition of all international trade for primarily commercial purposes, including sale, display,purchase, offer to purchase and acquisition for commercial purposes of wild-caught specimens ofgreat apes; andii. deterrent penalties aimed at eliminating illegal trade in great apes and parts and derivatives 		
thereof;

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

1Thailand participates in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Wildlife Enforcement
Network (WEN). The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) hosts
the ASEAN-WEN Programme Coordination Unit and is the National Focal Point for Thailand.
There is a national Thailand-WEN Committee whose members represent 27 government agencies,
including the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE), Customs, the police,
Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Agriculture
and Cooperatives, Thai Airways, Airports of Thailand, and Thailand Post. The Thailand-WEN
Committee has no enforcement powers, but it ensures that there is appropriate enforcement toprevent illegal wildlife trade, supervises compliance with ASEAN-WEN, and provides for otherinternational co-ordination1.

Orangutans Pongo spp. kept at a Thai government-run rescue centre prior to repatriation to Indonesia

1

The first Thailand-WEN Committee was established by Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment OrderNo.225/2550 (dated 28 Aug. B.E. 2550 (2007));
Available online in Thai:http://www.dnp.go.th/thailand-wen/about_tw/mutti.html.
The current committee was established by Order No.365/2554 (dated 22 Sep B.E. 2554 (2011));available online in Thai:http://www.dnp.go.th/thailand-wen/about_tw/comitt.html.
See also: http://www.dnp.go.th/thailand-wen/index.html (in Thai).

2

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand© Claire Beastall/TRAFFIC

A comprehensive amendment to WARPA was made available for public comment in 2012 andconsideration of the proposed changes was still ongoing in 2016. The draft amended Act requires alicence to possess, import, export, transit, trade, and hunt preserved and protected wildlife and all
species listed under international agreements (Section 8). Section 8 also requires a licence to operate
a captive breeding business and a zoo. Section 7 of the draft provides that the Minister must issue a
notification to specify the species of wildlife that are listed under international agreements.

METHODSThis report is a desk study that examined WARPA, its proposed amendment, and other Thai laws
and regulations that directly and indirectly govern aspects of the trade in CITES-listed species. This
desk review of laws and regulations did not survey actual enforcement practices.
The legal instruments were compiled using internet searches and by contacting government
authorities by email and telephone. Where there were questions about whether a legal instrument
remained in force, the authority that administers the legal instrument was contacted by email and/or telephone for clarification. The Annex to this report is also a desk study, comparing the species
listed in WARPA and its implementing regulations with the taxa listed in the CITES Appendicesdated 10 March 2016.
This report provides an overview of Thai laws and regulations that govern both domestic
and international trade in CITES-listed species. It refers in particular to ape species (gorillas,orangutans, chimpanzees and gibbons), but the underlying issues are the same for any other CITESlisted species that are not protected in Thailand.

©Fingers234/Dreamstime.com

Currency conversions were calculated at the 1 August 2016 exchange rate of USD1 = THB34.75.

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

3

RESULTS
Institutional jurisdiction

When Thailand originally adopted the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2535 (1992)(WARPA), the Ministry of Agriculture was responsible for administering it. When the government
created MoNRE in 2002, it transferred the responsibility for administering WARPA to the newministry.2 Three departments under MoNRE have primary authority for implementing WARPA
and the regulations issued under it. Under WARPA, DNP has overall authority and all powers
to conserve wildlife generally; the Department of Fisheries in the Ministry of Agriculture andCooperatives has authority with respect to marine species.3 The Forestry Act gives the Forest
Department authority in cases of illegal logging.4 DNP has sole responsibility for licencing publiczoos. Other departments have secondary responsibilities for implementing WARPA.5 WARPA also
creates the inter-ministerial National Wildlife Preservation and Protection Committee to oversee
implementation of the Act (Section 9). This Committee has supervisory, rather than enforcement
powers (Section 15).

WARPA provisions governing the trade in non-native species(with a primary focus on apes)

WARPA explicitly protects four native species of gibbons and regulates trade in those species. The
Act enables regulation of the import and export of native species (Section 23) and CITES-listed
species (Section 24). In 2013, MoNRE issued its most recent notification6 under WARPA prohibiting
the import and export of species listed in CITES Appendices I and II. It prohibits the import orexport of all ape species.
Section 4 of WARPA provides definitions. The law defines “wildlife” to mean all kinds of animals
that naturally exist in nature, which could encompass non-native species. Excluding those species
listed at a higher taxonomic level, the Act regulates only 11 non-native CITES-listed species ofvertebrate. The law defines “preserved wildlife” to mean rare wildlife species named in the list ofpreserved wildlife that is appended to the Act. This includes just 15 native species, none of which
are apes. The law defines “protected wildlife” to mean wildlife specified in ministerial regulation.

2

Act Amending Ministry, Sub-Ministry and Department, B.E. 2545 (2002).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%bb33/%bb33-20-9999-update.pdf

3Ministerial Regulation on the Official Organization Structure of Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant
Conservation, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment B.E. 2547 (2004), available online in Thai at:
http://portal.dnp.go.th/FileSystem/download/?uuid=716d10ba-be0c-481d-9b33-90225dbe5d12.pdf ; and Ministerial
Regulation on the Official Organization Structure of the Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Agriculture andCooperatives B.E. 2545 (2002), available online in Thai at http://www.fisheries.go.th/management/c012545.pdf

4Forestry Act, B.E. 2484 (1941), Section 64.
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%bb26/%bb26-20-9999-update.pdf

5Ministerial Regulations that specify the responsibilities of the different departments in MoNRE include: Ministerial
Regulation on the Official Organization Structure of Department of Forestry, available online in Thai at:
http://portal.dnp.go.th/FileSystem/download/?uuid=4dadab5a-a189-4b55-bfb0-19b437c9fb2e.pdf; Ministry of
Natural Resources and Environment B.E. 2551 (2008); Ministerial Regulation on the Official Organization Structure of
Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment B.E.
2547 (2004); and Ministerial Regulation on the Official Organization Structure of the Department of Fisheries, Ministry ofAgriculture and Cooperatives B.E. 2545 (2002).
Available online in Thai at http://www.fisheries.go.th/management/c012545.pdf.
6Notification of Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Re: Prohibited Import or Export of Designated Wildlife
Species and Their Carcasses B.E. 2556 (2013).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2e-2556-a0001.pdf

4

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in ThailandIt defines “hunt” to include capture.7 A 2003 Ministerial Regulation8 listed over 1300 species, thevast majority of which are native to Thailand. This includes all four native species of gibbon foundin the country: Siamang Hylobates syndactylus (Symphalangus syndactylus), Lar Gibbon Hylobateslar, Pileated Gibbon H. pileatus, and Agile Gibbon H. agilis. No other ape species are listed in theRegulation.
In 2015, MoNRE amended the 2003 Regulation9 to support combating illegal trade in African Elephantivory. Under the amended Regulation, the African Elephant is one of 11 CITES-listed non-native
vertebrate species protected in Thailand. The amended Regulation also protects a native turtle species,
the Malayan Snail-eating Turtle Malayemys macrocephala, which is listed in CITES Appendix II.10
WARPA does not define possession and does not mention ownership of wildlife except in thedefinition of “trade”, which refers to the transfer of ownership. WARPA does not use the word “owner”
or “ownership” with respect to preserved and protected wildlife; the Act refers only to possession ofpreserved and protected wildlife. WARPA regulates possession of only 11 non-native, CITES-listed
vertebrate species and their products, and does not regulate possession of native wildlife that is notlisted as preserved or protected. The Civil and Commercial Code defines ownership of wild animals
and defines possession in general terms.
WARPA (Section 4) defines “trade” to mean purchasing, selling, exchanging, disposing of, distributing,or transferring ownership for the purpose of trading, and having or showing for sale. Thailand’s
Criminal Code stipulates that, if someone is in possession of something for the purpose of committing
a crime; that possession is evidence for eventual criminal prosecution, even if the person in possession
is not the owner (Section 32).
The Act also defines “import” to mean bringing wildlife into or ordering wildlife to be delivered in theKingdom and defines “export” to mean taking or carrying wildlife out of the Kingdom. This definitionof “trade” does not correspond with that used by CITES, which includes re-export and introduction
from the sea.
WARPA prohibits trade in “preserved and protected wildlife and their carcasses or carcass products”
unless the animal was captive bred in compliance with the Act (Section 20). A 2003 Ministerial
Regulation11 lists the native species that may be legally bred in captivity in Thailand. This Regulation
does not list any ape species.
The Act prohibits importing, exporting, and transiting preserved and protected wildlife through thecountry without a licence (Section 23). It also stipulates that importing, exporting or transiting wildlife
and their carcasses through the country requires written permission in compliance with
CITES and states that ministerial regulations will establish the procedures and conditions for import,
export, and transit (Section 24). Both Section 23 and Section 24 apply to CITES-listed species.
7

Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2535 (1992).
Section 4. In this Act: “hunt” means to collect, capture, trap, shoot, or kill wildlife, or to cause injury by any other means
whatsoever to wildlife unowned and living free therein, and includes chasing, driving, calling and luring for the said purposes;
8
Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Wildlife as Protected Wildlife, B.E. 2546 (2003). Available online in Thai:
http://www.dnp.go.th/wildlifednp/%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3/gov2.
pdf
9
Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Certain Wildlife as Protected Wildlife (No. 3) B.E. 2558 (2015). Available online in Thai:
http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2b-2558-a0001.pdf
10This species was included within the Mekong Snail-eating Turtle Malayemys subtrijuga which was first listed in 2005. The
2008 Annotated Checklist of CITES Species includes M. macrocephala in Appendix II. Both of these species are native toThailand.
11
Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Species of Protected Wildlife that May Be Bred in Captivity, B.E. 2546 (2003). Available
online in Thai: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2b-2546-a0001.pdf
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand5

A 2015 regulation12 stipulates that anyone who wants to import, export, or transit any CITESlisted species, their carcasses and products, must have a licence (Sections 1 and 4) and sets out
the licencing procedure and requirements (Section 3). It specifies that import, export, or transitof CITES-listed species must comply with CITES requirements (Section 5). The 2015 Regulation
replaces a similar 1994 regulation and provides more protection for wildlife products. The 2015
Regulation establishes conditions for animal welfare during transport that importers, exporters,
or persons who legally transit wildlife through Thailand must follow. For import, export, or transitof CITES-listed species, a licence holder is required to comply with terms specified in the licence(Section 9).
WARPA establishes a criminal penalty for possessing, importing, exporting, and transitingpreserved and protected wildlife, and any CITES-listed species that is protected in Thailand, withouta licence, for up to four years’ imprisonment or a fine not exceeding THB40 000 (USD1151), or both
(Section 47). The same penalty applies to the import, export and transit of any CITES-listed species.
There is no criminal penalty for possession of CITES-listed species that are not listed as protectedin Thailand. There are only 11 non-native, CITES-listed vertebrate species whose possession canbe penalized under WARPA. The Act also provides that the Director General13 can settle a caseinvolving a criminal violation if the offender pays a fine within 30 days (Section 60). As of January
2016, DNP had not used this provision to settle any case involving a criminal violation.
The only other references to “trade” in WARPA are in transitory provisions, which apply to wildlife
and carcasses that any person in Thailand possessed on the date that the Ministerial Regulation
on protected wildlife came into force in 2003. In 2008, Thailand issued a Ministerial Regulation
governing captive breeding of protected wildlife and the possession of and trade in captive-bred
protected wildlife.14
WARPA gives wildlife and fisheries officials the power to investigate, which includes both crime
prevention authority and the same power to arrest that the police and other administrative officials
have under the Criminal Procedure Code (Section 45). The Forestry Act gives similar powers toforest officers (Section 64). After an arrest, the police are responsible for further inquiry and forfiling a criminal case against an alleged offender.
WARPA requires a licence to possess preserved and protected wildlife, their carcasses, or products
made from them, with exceptions for licenced captive breeding and public zoos (Section 19).
WARPA does not require a licence to possess species that the law and its regulations do not list as
preserved or protected. More than 1000 CITES-listed species are not listed under WARPA (see12

Ministerial Regulation prescribing criteria, procedures and requirements for applying and issuing of import, export ortransit permit of wildlife specimens, carcasses and their products B.E.2558 (2015).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2b-2558-a0002.pdf.

13“Director General” means the Director General of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation,or the Director General of the Department of Fisheries for matters related to aquatic animals only (WARPA, Section 4; andRoyal Decree on Transferring Administration and Duties of Government Services in accordance with the Reorganizationof Ministries Act, B.E. 2545 (2002)).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%bb33/%bb33-2a-9998-update.pdf.

14

Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Rules, Procedures and Conditions on Application and Issuance of Permit for
Breeding Operation of Preserved Wildlife or Protected Wildlife, Possession and Transfer for Trade of Protected Wildlife
and their Carcasses, Trade of Protected Wildlife, Their Carcasses and Products from Carcasses B.E. 2551 (2008). Available
online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2b-2551-a0001.pdf. The regulation requires apermit for trading and transferring protected wildlife, their carcasses, and products made from them (Sections 18 and
23). The trading permit grants permission to possess protected wildlife (Section 20). Any trading permit holder, when
disposing of protected wildlife, their carcasses, and products made from them, is required to issue a selling permit to thebuyer, unless the carcasses are disposed of for consumption (Section 22). Trading permit holders must report receiving
and disposing of protected wildlife, their carcasses, and products made from them (Section 21).

6

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

Annex). A 2015 Notification15 requires anyone in possession of protected wildlife or carcasses or
products of protected wildlife to report it to the wildlife authorities. If the Director General findsthat any person in possession of a living wild animal meets all requirements for maintaining theanimal, the Director General may issue a temporary licence to possess it. The Notification does
not specify the duration of such a temporary licence. If the Director General finds that the person
in possession of a living protected animal does not meet all requirements for maintaining it, theDirector General will order the animal to be turned over within 120 days to a public zoo or any
person who has a licence for captive breeding. WARPA implicitly allows only possession, but not
full ownership, of preserved and protected wildlife. Therefore, turning over a wild animal or animals
would be a transfer of possession, but not of ownership. If the person does not turn over the animal
within 120 days to a public zoo or any person who has a licence for captive breeding, they must turnthe animal over to wildlife authorities and the protected animal becomes the property of the State.
A 2015 MoNRE Notification provides that anyone who has a licence to possess protected wildlife
must care for it as specified in the licence, provide sufficient appropriate food, and protect the
animals from harm, injury, illness, stress, and fear.16
WARPA provides for confiscating all preserved or protected wildlife and their carcasses, nests, or
products that are acquired or possessed in violation of the Act (Section 58). Confiscation requires
a court order. Section 58 also stipulates that all preserved and protected wildlife and their productsthat are illegally acquired must be confiscated and, once they are confiscated, belong to the State.
A 1997 Department of Forestry Regulation stipulates that wildlife that is the property of the Statecannot be sold, disposed of, or transferred.17 The same Regulation also provides that living animals
must be delivered to the nearest wildlife conservation office for veterinary treatment and returnto the wild. The carcasses of dead animals must be delivered to the nearest wildlife conservation
office for preservation; if a carcass cannot be preserved, it must be destroyed (Section 5). Section
5 applies to all wildlife, irrespective of whether a species is listed as preserved or protected. Under
WARPA’s definition of “wildlife”, this Regulation would also apply to non-native wildlife as well.
CITES' requirements relating to the confiscation of living specimens are set out in Article VIII of theConvention, section 4 (see Box 3).
Box 3: Text of the Convention“Article VIII – Measures to be taken by the Parties.
4. Where a living specimen is confiscated as a result of measures referred to in paragraph 1 of this
Article:a) the specimen shall be entrusted to a Management Authority of the State of confiscation;b) the Management Authority shall, after consultation with the State of export, return thespecimen to that State at the expense of that State, or to a rescue centre or such other place as theManagement Authority deems appropriate and consistent with the purposes of the present
Convention; andc) the Management Authority may obtain the advice of a Scientific Authority, or may, wheneverit considers it desirable, consult the Secretariat in order to facilitate the decision under
sub-paragraph (b) of this paragraph, including the choice of a rescue centre or other place.”

15

Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation Notification Re: Form and Procedure for Reportingon Possession, Form of Sales Document, Presenting and Verifying Documentary Evidence or other Evidence to Officials,
Issuance of Permit for Temporary Possession of Protected Wildlife and Issuance of Certificate to Possess Protected
Wildlife Carcasses or their Products, B.E. 2558 (2015).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2e-9999-update.pdf

16

Notification of Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Re: Specification of Foster Protected Wildlife, B.E. 2558
(2015). Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2e-2558-a0002.pdf
17Department of Forestry Regulation on Management of Wildlife or their Carcasses that Vest in the State, B.E. 2540
(1997). Available online in Thai at: http://web3.dnp.go.th/wildlifenew/downloads/Regulation11.pdf
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

7

WARPA regulates public zoos and requires anyone who wants to operate a public zoo to obtain alicence (Section 29). Public zoos must have a licence to possess preserved and protected wildlife
species (Section 19). Operators of public zoos must have an additional licence to breed preserved
and protected species (Section 18). These provisions apply to the non-native CITES-listed vertebrate
species that are listed as protected under WARPA.
WARPA prohibits the possession of the nests of preserved or protected wildlife (Section 21), butotherwise regulates possession of preserved native wildlife only in the context of public zoos
(Sections 19 and 30). A 1997 Ministerial Regulation18 sets out the procedures for applying for alicence to establish and operate a public zoo. Specifically, the Regulation requires that:• A public zoo must employ a wildlife scientist and veterinarian;• Shelter must be suitable for the size and number of animals;• Wildlife shows must not abuse or harm animals; and• A public zoo must have a pollution prevention system and a safety system.
The Regulation does not define “abuse” or “harm” and does not provide any further detail on what is
considered “suitable” shelter.

Onus of proof of illegal import

Section 227 of the Thai Criminal Procedure Code stipulates the presumption of innocence. It also
specifies that, when any reasonable doubt exists as to whether or not an accused has committed
an offence, the law gives the accused the benefit of the doubt. In ruling 12/2555 (2012) theConstitutional Court affirmed this presumption and stated that a provision of the Direct Sales andDirect Marketing Act B.E. 2545 (2002), which shifted the burden of proof to directors of a legal
entity involved in a criminal act, was unenforceable.
The Civil Procedure Code provides that any party who alleges any fact in support of his or her
complaint or answer has the burden of proof for that fact, except for any fact that is generally
known, indisputable, or admitted by the opposing party (Section 84/1). Section 15 of the Criminal
Procedure Code provides that when none of its provisions specifically apply to any procedural act,
the provisions of the Civil Procedure Code apply to the extent possible.
Section 59 of WARPA is similar to the provision of the Direct Sales and Direct Marketing Act andwould be similarly unenforceable in the specific context of the Constitutional Court’s 2012 ruling.
The provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code and the Civil Procedure Code apply when there
is no specific law that provides otherwise. It is possible, however, for an amendment to WARPA to
shift the burden of proof to require a trader or anyone else in possession of CITES-listed non-native
wildlife to prove that they had acquired the wildlife legally.

Repatriation procedures

In 2007, MoNRE issued a regulation that governed the repatriating of non-native wildlife19 incompliance with CITES requirements (see Box 3). This Regulation stipulated that the country oforigin of any confiscated non-native wildlife must pay the costs of maintaining the wildlife fromthe date of confiscation until the date of repatriation, as well as the costs of transportation to thecountry of origin. Under this Regulation, the Minister had the power to allow a cost exemption. The
Regulation also specified, however, that Thailand could not repatriate any non-native wildlife until it
vested in the State; for this purpose, the provisions of the Civil and Commercial Code or18

Ministerial Regulation No. 9, B.E. 2540 (1997).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2b-2540-009.pdf
19Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Regulation on Returning Wildlife to its Country of
Origin, B.E. 2550 (2007). Available online in Thai at: http://www.dnp.go.th/MFCD3/inoffice2008/0911.7-5360.pdf
8

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

the Criminal Procedure Code applied. In 2015, the DNP, with the approval of the National Wildlife
Preservation and Protection Committee, repealed the 2007 Regulation as it created a conflict
between the powers of the Minister and the Director General to specify costs associated withmaintenance and repatriation and to allow exemptions from those costs. Two Regulations now
govern the repatriation of wildlife: Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives Regulation on Practicefor Property in Dispute in Forestry Offences, B.E. 2533 (1990)20, and Department of Forestry
Regulation on Management of Wildlife or their Carcasses that Vest in the State, B.E. 2540 (1997)21.
In 2009, 11 orangutans were found by a roadside in Phuket Province. Repatriation of theseorangutans, and three others, did not occur until 201522. The legal basis for holding the animals forfive years was the Civil and Commercial Code, which regulates property of any kind. Section 1327
of the Code stipulates that the State owns anything that has been acquired illegally and subsequently
placed under the care of a government department, unless the owner claims it within one year.
Section 36 of the Criminal Code also provides that a lawful owner has one year to claim property
the State has confiscated. Under the Civil and Commercial Code, if the owner is unknown, the State
must hold the property for five years. The Criminal Code does not have a provision that requires
the State to hold for five years any property whose owner is unknown. Since no proof of priorpossession or ownership of the 11 orangutans was offered, under the Civil and Commercial Code,Thailand was required to hold them for five years before they could be repatriated. Under the
MoNRE Regulation in force at the time, the country of origin would have been responsible forcovering the cost of repatriation. In the orangutan case, diplomatic channels were used to secure
exemption from payment.
Under Section 1327 of the Civil and Commercial Code, if confiscated property is perishable orwhere adherence to the waiting period involves risks or expenses out of proportion to the value ofthe property, the State may sell the property at public auction. WARPA does make several references
to the disposal of wildlife, but neither CITES nor WARPA provide any definition for “dispose of ”
in the context of wildlife. Section 32 restricts the ways in which a person dissolving a public zoo may
dispose of wildlife. When government authorities revoke a licence to possess preserved or protectedwildlife, Section 43 establishes a deadline of 90 days within which any person whose licence isrevoked must dispose of such animals. The 1997 Regulation that governs wildlife whose ownershipvests in the State gives the Director General of DNP the authority to create a committee whose
powers would include determining the value of wildlife that has been captive bred in Thailand,
and their carcasses, that may be auctioned (Section 8)23 . To date, DNP has not yet created sucha committee. There does not appear to be a provision in WARPA or one of its regulations thatprovides for the valuation of wildlife that is not captive bred.
The provisions of the Civil and Commercial Code apply when there is no specific law that provides
otherwise. It is possible, therefore, for an amendment to WARPA to stipulate that illegally imported
wildlife must be repatriated as soon as possible, subject to measures to ensure the health andsecurity of the animal or animals.

20

Available online in Thai at www.dnp9.com/dnp9/web1/file_editor/file/001/19.pdf

21

Available online in Thai at: http://web3.dnp.go.th/wildlifenew/downloads/Regulation11.pdf

22

Wipatayotin, A. Thailand to return 14 orangutans to Indonesia. Bangkok Post. 27 August 2015.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asean/670416/thailand-to-return-14-orangutans-to-indonesia. Accessed 1 September
2015

23

Notification of Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Re: Specification of Foster Protected Wildlife, B.E. 2558
(2015). Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2e-2558-a0002.pdf
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

9

Existing legislation which is also used to regulate the illegal tradein CITES-listed species
Civil and Commercial Code
Title II of the Civil and Commercial Code specifically addresses ownership of wild animals:• Subject to special laws and regulations relating thereto, wild animals are ownerless so long as
they have their freedom;• Wild animals in zoological gardens and fish in ponds or other enclosed private waters are notownerless;• A captured wild animal becomes ownerless if it regains its freedom and the owner does not
pursue it without delay or gives up the pursuit;• A tamed animal becomes ownerless if it gives up the habit of returning (Section 1320).
The Code stipulates that its provisions on ownership of wild animals are subject to special laws andregulations, which in this case would be WARPA and regulations issued under it. The National Park
Act, B.E. 2504 (1961) prohibits taking wild animals from inside national parks.
Title III of the Civil and Commercial Code describes what “possession” means under Thai law. The
sections which are most directly relevant to wildlife trade are:
• A person acquires possessory right by holding a property with the intention of holding it forhimself (Section 1367);• A person may acquire possessory right through another person holding for him (Section 1368);• A person who holds property is presumed to hold it for himself (Section 1369);• A possessor is presumed to possess in good faith, peacefully and openly (Section 1370);• If it is proved that the same person possessed the same property at two different times, it ispresumed that his possession continued during the interval (Section 1371);• It is presumed that the possessor has, in law, the right which he exercises over the property
possessed (Section 1372);• Transfer of property is effected by delivery of the property possessed (Section 1378).
These provisions of the Civil and Commercial Code apply only in the case of legal possession andwould not apply in the case of illegal wildlife trade.
Thailand’s Civil and Commercial Code (Section 1303) provides that, when two or more people
claim ownership of the same moveable property, the law favours the person who is in possession,
provided that that person acquired the property for value and obtained possession in good faith.
The Code further provides, however, that this does not apply to property that was acquired throughan offence, in which case the Criminal Code applies.
Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code
Under Thailand’s Criminal Code, any property that is involved in the commission of an offence
is forfeited, regardless of whether it belongs to the offender (Section 32). A court may order theforfeiture of property that is illegally acquired, unless the property belongs to someone who was
not involved in committing the offence and who petitions the court to have that property restored(Section 33). All property given as a bribe to officials or to induce a person to commit an offence,or as a reward to a person for committing an offence, is forfeited unless the property belongs tosomeone who was not involved in committing the offence (Section 34). Under the Criminal Code,forfeited property vests in the State as soon as a court orders it, and the State has the power to orderthat forfeited property be destroyed or made unusable (Section 35). Property vested in the State may
be held for up to one year after the final decision of a court to allow a rightful owner to claim it if theState still holds it. In the case of wildlife which had been repatriated, the owner would be unable tore-claim it (Section 36).

10 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

The Criminal Procedure Code gives an arresting officer the power to seize all articles (which should
include wildlife), that may be used as evidence and to retain those articles until the criminal case is
finally decided. If possession of a seized article is not a criminal offence, the owner may claim it, but
may be required to post bail for it to ensure that it will be available to be used as evidence (Section
85).
The rules governing evidence in the Criminal Procedure Code generally specify that all physicalevidence must be presented to a court. However, in cases in which physical evidence cannot be
brought to court, given the nature of the evidence, the court has the discretion to accept a reportconcerning such evidence, and the court may accept the report in lieu of the physical evidence(Section 241). For example, in practice, when birds are involved in a violation of WARPA, DNP
officials release them immediately back into the wild and present photographs of them to a court.
Other wild animals are taken to a wildlife facility and given a health check before being released.
Export, Import of Goods Act, B.E. 2522 (1979)
The Director General of the Department of Foreign Trade in the Ministry of Commerce is amember of the National Wildlife Preservation and Protection Committee. The Committee has
supervisory, rather than enforcement, powers.
Under the Export, Import of Goods Act, B.E. 2522 (1979), the Department of Foreign Trade has
the power to issue notifications controlling the import and export of goods. Wildlife is considereda “good”; the Department can prohibit the import and export of wildlife. In 1966, the Department
of Foreign Trade (at the time called the Department of Economic Affairs) issued the Notification on
Export of Goods (No.7), B.E. 2509 (1966)24 which requires an export licence for exporting wildlife
listed in the Notification. This Notification is still in force.25 The Notification lists gibbons, but does
not specify which species and so presumably includes all gibbon species, even those which are nonnative. No other ape species are included. This Notification prohibits the export of:• Selected species that are protected under WARPA regulations and also CITES-listed;• Six species that are protected in Thailand but are not CITES-listed;• Selected species that are not protected in Thailand but are CITES-listed; and• Three species that are not protected in Thailand and are not CITES-listed.
Officials in the Department of Foreign Trade confirmed that this Notification is still in force. In
practice, however, the Department of Foreign Trade will not issue import or export licences forwildlife. Importers and exporters must apply to DNP for a licence.
The powers of Customs officials under the Customs Act to prevent smuggling, search, seize, andarrest, also apply to exports, imports and transit (Section 14/1). If there is a reason to suspect that anoffence under this Act has been committed, Customs officers and other competent officials (which
include wildlife officers), have the power to seize anything connected with the commission of theoffence, to be used as evidence (Section 24). The penalty for exporting, importing or transitingprohibited goods is imprisonment not exceeding 10 years or a fine equivalent to five times the valueof the exported or imported goods, or both, and the goods, including any containers and vehicles
used in transporting them are confiscated.

24
25

Available online in Thai: http://www.dft.go.th/th-th/แสดงเนื้อหา/ArticleId/2660/-7-2509-26-2509

According to the Department of Foreign Trade. See: http://www.dft.go.th/th-th/%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%8E%E0%B8%A
B%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A2/cid/1281 (in Thai)
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

11Anyone who wants to import, export, or transit wildlife must have three licences—one from the
Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, one from Customs, and one fromThailand’s International Animal Quarantine Station (AQS) at the port of entry26. A 2003 Ministryof Commerce Order27 authorized the Director General of the Department of National Parks,
Wildlife and Plant Conservation to grant licences for exporting Asian Elephants Elephas maximus.
This order did not mention any other species of wildlife and the Ministry of Commerce has issued
no other such order with respect to export of any other wildlife species. In 2006, the Ministry ofCommerce issued a Notification on Exporting of Rice, Elephant and Wood, B.E. 254928 which
requires a licence to export a living Asian Elephant, its genetic material, and any part of a deadAsian Elephant.
Customs Act B.E. 2469 (1926), as amended up to B.E. 2557 (2014)
The Director General of Customs is a member of the National Wildlife Preservation and Protection
Committee.
The Customs Act (Section 24) does not specifically give powers to wildlife officers, but the Criminal
Procedure Code (Section 2) generally empowers all administrative officers who have the powerof crime prevention and arrest, which includes wildlife officers. Wildlife officers do not havepowers under the Customs Act and similarly, Customs officers do not have powers under WARPA.
However, in practice, if a Customs officer finds wildlife or carcasses he or she will use Customs’
seizure power and contact a wildlife officer to act under WARPA.
Chapter IV of the Customs Act, which governs smuggling, provides that Customs officers, thepolice, and other administrative officials may seize any article at any time and place (Section 24).
Under the Criminal Procedure Code (Section 85), the police and other administrative officials,
including wildlife officers, can seize all articles which have already cleared Customs control, but for
which there is no legal record of entry. All property seized under the Customs Act must be turned
over to Customs or the nearest district office (Section 25). In practice, however, seized wildlife isimmediately turned over to a wildlife officer. The Customs Act allows the owner of property seized
by Customs officials 30 days to claim it; after which it becomes the property of the State, irrespectiveof whether Customs actually files a criminal case (Section 24). Similar to Section 1327 of the Civil
and Commercial Code, the Customs Act provides that if seized property is perishable or if detention
poses a risk of damage, or the expense of detention is more than is reasonable, the Director Generalof Customs may order it sold at auction before it comes property of the State (Section 25). The
Customs Act provides that any person who imports, exports, stores or transports prohibited goods
is subject to a fine equivalent to four times the price of the goods and imprisonment for up to 10
years, or both (Section 27).
26

Section 31 of the Animal Epidemics Act, B.E. 2558 (2015) states that “No person is allowed to import, export, or transit
an animal or carcass through the Kingdom, without a licence issued by the Director-General or a person assigned by the
Director-General.” Section 4 of this Act states that “animal” means: (1) elephant, horse, cow, buffalo, donkey, mule, goat,
sheep, pig, dog, cat, rabbit, monkey, gibbon, and shall include semen used for breeding and their embryos…(3) otherkinds of animals as specified in Ministerial Regulation.”
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%c330/%c330-20-2558-a0001.pdf. A Ministerial
Regulation Prescribing Other Kinds of Animals under the Law on Animal Epidemics Act, B.E. 2546 (2003), listed many
species of protected and preserved wildlife, but does not list any ape species.
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%c330/%c330-2b-2546-a0002.pdf. The Ministry ofAgriculture and Cooperatives administers this act and its regulations. Department of Livestock Development Notification
on Applying and Issuing of Permit, Procedure on Import, Export or Transit of animal or carcasses, B.E. 2558 (2015), statesthat applications for permits shall be submitted to AQS.
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%c330/%c330-2e-2558-a0015.pdf. For additional
information in English,
see also:http://aqi.dld.go.th/th/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=73&Itemid=11927

Ministry of Commerce Order No.121, B.E. 2546 (2003) Re: Transfer of Power to Issue Export Permits for Elephants.

28

Available online in Thai: http://www.dft.go.th/th-th/แสดงเนื้อหา/ArticleId/2087/-2549-17-2549

12 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in ThailandIf there is conduct involving animals or plants that is illegal under the law of any other State that is a
Party to an agreement to which Thailand is also a Party, the State whose law has been violated may
request Thailand to return the animals or plants. In such a case, Customs officials must return themto the requesting State as required by the agreement. This provision is reciprocal—if Thailand findsthat animals or plants have been illegally taken out of the country, it may request the receiving Stateto return them. Customs will take action under Thai law if the action is illegal under Thai law, or if it
is illegal under the laws of both Thailand and the other State. If the action was illegal under the lawof the other State only, Thailand will return the animals or plants leaving the other State to take legal
action (Section 37). In practice, Customs officials turn over all wildlife they seize to wildlife officers
and the DNP handles any eventual repatriation.
If Customs officials have a reasonable suspicion that any shipment in transit through Thailand
may contain anything illegal, they have the power to search the shipment, without first obtaining
a warrant. If a shipment does contain anything that is being illegally shipped through Thailand,
Customs must seize it. After seizure under these specific circumstances, the Director Generalof Customs may send the illegal goods back to the exporter or destroy them (Section 58). The
Customs Act does not specify whether the Director General of Customs has any option other than
repatriation or destruction.
Anti-Participation in Transnational Organized Crime Act, B.E. 2556 (2013)
The Anti-Participation in Transnational Organized Crime Act (APTOCA) defines “serious crime” asa criminal offence punishable by maximum imprisonment of at least four years (Section 3).
The Act defines “organized criminal group” as a structured group of three or more persons, existing
for a period of time and acting in concert to commit one or more serious crimes in order to obtainany material benefit (Section 3).
Under APTOCA, for a crime to be considered “transnational organized crime” it must be carriedout by an organized criminal group and be:• Committed in more than one State;• Committed in one State but with a substantial part of its planning, direction, support or control
taking place in another State;• Committed in one State but involving an organized criminal group that engages in criminal
activities in more than one State; or• Committed in one State, but with substantial effects in another State (Section 3).
Whoever does any of the following has committed the offence of participating in transnationalorganized crime:• Becomes a member of an organized criminal group;• Conspires with two or more people to commit a serious transnational crime;• Is knowingly directly or indirectly involved in a serious transnational crime; or• Aids and abets a serious transnational crime (Section 5).
The penalty for transnational organized crime is imprisonment for four to 15 years or a fine of
THB80 000–300 000 (USD2302–8633), or both (Section 25).
Investigators and enforcement officials have powers of entry, search and seizure when there arereasonable grounds to believe that there is something hidden which it is illegal to possess (Section
14). Similar to Section 1327 of the Civil and Commercial Code and Section 25 of the Customs Act,APTOCA provides that if seized property is not suitable to be kept or if keeping it is more of aburden on the State than using it, the property may be sold at auction (Section 15).

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

13Under WARPA, the criminal penalty for importing, exporting, or transiting any CITES-listed
species without a licence is a maximum of four years’ imprisonment, which qualifies it as aserious crime under APTOCA. If the offenders meet the APTOCA definition of having engaged
in transnational organized crime, the penalties for illegal wildlife trade would be significantly
more severe under APTOCA than they are under WARPA, which could make enforcement under
APTOCA preferable under those specific circumstances. However, APTOCA’s provision that would
enable auctioning property that may be seized during enforcement operations is unlikely to beappropriate or feasible in the context of living wild animals.
Anti-Money Laundering Act B.E. 2542 (1999), as amended up to B.E. 2558 (2015)
The Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA)29 defines “predicate offence” to include any offence:• Related to smuggling under the Customs Act;• Related to participating in an organized criminal group; and• Related to the unlawful use, holding or possessing of natural resources or a process for illegal
exploitation of natural resources for commercial purposes (Section 3, clauses (7), (10) and (14),respectively).
AMLA defines “asset connected with the commission of an offence” to mean money or an asset
obtained from the commission of a predicate offence, no matter how many times it may have beentransferred from one person to another or whether it is registered as belonging to any one person(Section 3). A 2013 Regulation specifies that “assets” means any non-monetary assets related to an
offence under AMLA which a court orders to be vested in the State.30
AMLA defines the crime of money laundering to include:• Knowingly obtaining, possessing or using an asset that is committed with the commission of apredicate offence;• Transferring, accepting a transfer, or converting any asset connected with the commission of apredicate offence to assist another person to evade criminal liability or to be liable for a lesser
penalty; and• Doing anything to conceal or disguise the true nature, acquisition, source, location, distribution
or transfer of an asset connected with the commission of a predicate offence (Section 5).
The penalty for money laundering is imprisonment for one year to 10 years or a fine of
THB20 000–200 000 (USD 575–5755), or both (Section 60).
When there are reasonable grounds to believe that an asset connected with the commission of an
offence may be transferred, moved, concealed or hidden, AMLA gives a statutory committee thepower to order a temporary seizure of the asset for up to 90 days (Section 48). If there is convincing
evidence that the asset is connected with the commission of an offence, the Anti-Money Laundering
Board must request the public prosecutor to petition the court to transfer ownership of the asset
to the State immediately (Section 49). If the case is not prosecuted, AMLA provides for a two-year
waiting period to allow an owner to claim the seized asset before it is transferred to the Anti-Money
Laundering Fund (Section 49).

29

Available online in English: http://www.amlo.go.th/amlofarm/farm/en/files/AMLA%20No%201-5.pdf

30

Prime Minister Office Regulation on Management of Property Forfeited by Court Order to Become Property of State
under Anti Money Laundering Act B.E. 2556 (2013).
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%bb40/%bb40-2g-2556-a0009.pdf

14 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

AMLA provides that if a seized asset was not connected with the commission of a crime andremains unclaimed within two years, the asset must be transferred into the Anti-Money Laundering
Fund (Section 51/1). The 2013 Regulation provides that when assets cannot be sold because of theirnature, the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) must make an inventory of them as evidence,and report it to the Ministry of Finance (Section 5/7). AMLA has a provision similar to Section
1327 of the Civil and Commercial Code and Section 25 of the Customs Act, which allows an asset
to be sold at auction if it is not suitable for retention or if retention would be disproportionately
burdensome (Section 57).
AMLA provides that when another law applies to an asset—in this case wildlife specimens—but noaction has been taken under the other law, and the offence is a transnational crime, action may betaken under AMLA (Section 58).
The minimum penalty for money laundering under AMLA is insufficient to qualify as a serious
crime under APTOCA. However, under Section 5, AMLA provides the possibility of imposing acriminal penalty for possessing illegally traded wildlife. AMLA’s provision that enables auctioning
assets that the State cannot retain is similar to related provisions in the Civil and Commercial Code,the Customs Act, and APTOCA, all of which are unlikely to be appropriate or feasible in the context
of illegally traded wildlife. In practice, any wildlife seized would be immediately handed over towildlife officials.
National Park Act B.E. 2504 (1961)
The National Park Act, 1961 defines “animal” to mean “animals of all kinds including all parts
thereof and things obtained therefrom or produced thereby” (Section 4). The Act prohibits thefollowing actions involving animals:• Taking animals out of a national park and doing anything that endangers animals;• Taking weapons and any equipment for hunting and trapping animals into a national park; and• Causing trouble or a nuisance to any animal (Section 16).
A 2015 Notification of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation31 applies
to all animals in national parks, including aquatic animals, and is not limited to preserved andprotected wildlife. The Notification provides that any person who disturbs, harms, or causes any
change in the behaviour of animals will be punished under the National Parks Act.
The provisions of the National Park Act and the 2015 Notification could be used to support
enforcement of WARPA provisions that prohibit trade in the four species of gibbons that areprotected in Thailand if the animals were taken out of a national park. In the specific case of animals
taken from national parks, these provisions could be a basis for regulating trade in any other CITESlisted species that are native to Thailand, but would not support controlling illegal trade in
non-native CITES-listed species.

31

Notification on Prohibiting Disturbing or Causing Change to Behavior or Harming Any Animals in National Parks,
issued on 11 August 2015.
Available online in Thai at: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%cd10/%cd10-2e-2558-a0005.pdf
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

15© Claire beastall/TRAFFIC© TRAFFIC

Orangutans Pongo spp. and Chimpanzee Pan troglodytes at a theme park in Thailand

Young Chimpanzee Pan troglodytes used for photographs with visitors at a zoo in Thailand

16 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

CONCLUSIONS

Because WARPA omits most non-native CITES-listed species from domestic protection, Thailand
is virtually unable to control any trade, international and domestic, in CITES species. For example,
WARPA does not provide for situations when non-native wild animals are abandoned, as happened
with the orangutans found near Phuket. AMLA and APTOCA, laws which came into force in 2013
and 2015, respectively, offer potential for supporting enforcement of WARPA. Thailand needs toensure that when WARPA is amended, it closes loopholes and opens possibilities for strengthening
enforcement by harmonizing provisions and creating mechanisms for co-ordination with theauthorities that administer AMLA and APTOCA.

RECOMMENDATIONSThis study examined WARPA and its proposed amendment in light of provisions in othernational laws and regulations that directly and indirectly govern wildlife trade in Thailand. The
recommendations presented here are made in reference to the draft amendment to WARPA. They
refer only to the specific issues involved with possession of and trade in non-native CITES-listed
species that are not protected in Thailand.
a. The current definition of “trade” in WARPA does not include re-export and introduction fromthe sea.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to WARPA to add the words “re-export andintroduction from the sea” to the definition of “trade” and make the WARPA definition
consistent with CITES.
b. Non-native CITES-listed wildlife is not currently protected in Thailand, with the exception of 11
vertebrate species. The current draft amendment to WARPA would not list non-native species aspreserved or protected species in Thailand, but would prohibit possessing, importing, exporting,transiting, and trading, without a licence, all species listed under international agreements.
Those prohibitions will not be effective until the Minister issues a notification.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to specify that when the Minister issues
notifications concerning species listed in any international agreement to which Thailand isa Party, the notification must apply the lists in their entirety by reference to them. The first
notification applying the CITES Appendices must apply to all subsequent revisions to the
Appendices.
c. The current draft amendment to WARPA would allow hunting of preserved and protectedwildlife as well as CITES-listed species, as long as the hunter has a licence from DNP.
Recommendation: Revise this to specify that the hunting of species listed in CITES Appendix I is
prohibited and that licences for hunting species listed in CITES Appendices II and III may only
be issued on confirmation that the animal or animals hunted will only be used for the purposeof captive breeding or scientific exchange with a licenced research institution.
d. There is no provision in the current draft amendment to WARPA that provides for de-listing a
species as preserved or protected in Thailand.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to stipulate that the Minister must document
the scientific evidence that a species is no longer endangered, and make that documentation
publicly available, before issuing a notification to de-list it.
e. Currently, the State must prove that anyone who possesses non-native, CITES-listed wildlife has
acquired that wildlife illegally.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to stipulate that, unless there is evidence oflegal import or export, there is a presumption that unlicenced possession of non-native,
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

17

CITES-listed wildlife is a product of, or for the purpose of, illegal trade unless the person with
unlicenced possession of such wildlife proves otherwise beyond a reasonable doubt, and that
DNP must co-ordinate with AMLO and officials appointed under APTOCA to make inquiries
for eventual prosecution under those Acts, in addition to penalties under WARPA. This would
be constitutionally defensible on the basis that protection of endangered wildlife is in the public
interest.
f.

The Civil and Commercial Code applies to repatriation of non-native wildlife that is seized andconfiscated by the State when there is no criminal prosecution, which means that there may be
a delay of one to five years before such wildlife may be repatriated. The Criminal Code provides
a one-year waiting period after the final decision of a court to allow a rightful owner to claim
forfeited property if the State still holds it.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to specify that there is a presumption that
unlicenced non-native wildlife is a product of, or is destined for, illegal international trade andthat when a government official seizes or collects unlicenced non-native wildlife DNP must
immediately request a court to order that it is vested in the State. Once such wildlife is vested in
the State, DNP should immediately begin the process of determining the country of origin andwhere this involves living animals, make contact with the appropriate officials in that country to
determine whether repatriation is possible.

g. In most cases in current practice, wildlife officials follow the exception to the rules of evidence
that the Criminal Procedure Code provides and submit a report in lieu of presenting seizedwildlife in court as the physical evidence for any eventual criminal prosecution.
Recommendation: Revise the draft amendment to add a clause stipulating that wheneverunlicenced, non-native, CITES-listed wildlife is found, under any circumstances, whether anowner can be identified or not, it is presumed to be in Thailand illegally. In such cases, theprovisions of the Criminal Procedure Code that govern evidence must apply. Officials must
immediately document the wildlife as physical evidence as required for a criminal prosecution
and where this involves living animals should then initiate the procedure to repatriate thewildlife where appropriate.
h. Criminal penalties under WARPA are low. Under the draft amendment to WARPA, penalties
for illegal import, export, transit and possession of CITES-listed wildlife would be 3–10 years
imprisonment and a fine of THB60 000–200 000 (USD1727–5755), or both. The minimum
term of imprisonment for a crime under AMLA is only one year, less than the proposed
minimum penalty under the WARPA amendment, which would make AMLA a potentially lessattractive option for prosecuting illegal wildlife traffickers. Maximum and minimum fines under
APTOCA would still be higher than the penalties under the WARPA amendment.
Recommendations: (1) Revise the draft amendment to include transit, transport and storage ofunlicenced CITES-listed species; (2) Before finalizing the penalty provisions in the proposed
WARPA amendment, MoNRE should consider all options for penalties for illegal wildlife
trafficking available under all applicable laws currently in force and harmonize penalty
provisions to ensure maximum potential for punishing those responsible for wildlife trafficking
at all levels of the crime.

i.

The National Wildlife Preservation and Protection Committee that WARPA created has
supervisory powers but no enforcement powers. The National Wildlife Committee that the
proposed amended WARPA would create would not have a representative from the Department
of Foreign Trade and its supervisory functions would be even more limited than those of
the current Committee. It appears that DNP officers, at least at the technical level, are largely
unaware of AMLA and APTOCA and the potential for using those laws in co-ordination with
WARPA to control illegal wildlife trade.

18 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

Recommendations: (1) Include an article in the amended WARPA that explicitly recognizes
the Thailand-WEN Committee and its role in preventing wildlife trafficking and prosecuting
traffickers; (2) Revise of the proposed WARPA amendment to ensure that the powers and dutiesof the National Wildlife Committee and those of the Thailand-WEN Committee complement
each other and that the National Wildlife Committee has the duty to co-ordinate closely with
the Thailand-WEN.
Laws and regulations that directly and indirectly affect control of trade in CITES species areadministered by several different authorities, not only the DNP.
Recommendation: Before finalizing the amendment to WARPA a comprehensive review of theprovisions in the proposed amendment should be conducted to identify any overlap and/or
conflict with those in other national laws and regulations. Changes can then be made in theamendment to ensure that it is in harmony with existing laws and regulations and is clear andconsistent in the application of the law and the imposition of deterrent penalties.

© Eric Geveart/Dreamstime.com

j.

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

19

ANNEXWARPA and Thailand’s protection of CITES-listed, non-native
fauna species

Thailand’s Wild Animal Preservation and Protection Act, B.E. 2535 (1992) (WARPA) includes
a list of preserved wildlife which contains 15 species. In addition to this, two regulations list the
species which are afforded protection under WARPA. The first, issued in 2003, lists 1303 taxa.32
The second, issued in 201533, lists just two species; the Malayan Snail-eating Turtle Malayemys
macrocephala34 and the non-native African Elephant Loxodonta africana.
This Annex contains an analysis of the 1320 species of fauna which are included in and under
WARPA. This determines how many of these are listed in the three appendices to the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the numbers andproportions of these which are not native to Thailand35.
The CITES appendices include numerous species and subspecies of fauna within the threeappendices (Table 1)36 . CITES regulations apply to the international trade in more than 5600 taxa
(Table 2), fewer than 10% of these are native to Thailand (Table 3).
Table 1: CITES-listed species35
FAUNA

Appendix I

Appendix II

Appendix III

Mammals

300 species (spp.) (incl. 11 populations[popns.]) + 23 subspecies (sspp.) (incl.
3 popns.)

501 spp.
(incl. 16 popns.) + 7
sspp. (incl. 2 popns.)

45 spp. + 10 sspp.

Birds

154 spp.
(incl. 2 popns.) + 10 sspp.

1278 spp.
(incl. 1 popn.) + 3
sspp.

25 spp.

Reptiles

80 spp.
(incl. 8 popns.) + 5 sspp.

673 spp.
(incl. 6 popns.)

40 spp.

Amphibians

17 spp.

126 spp.

3 spp.

Fish

16 spp.

87 spp.

Invertebrates

63 spp. + 5 sspp.

2162 spp. + 1 sspp.

22 spp. + 3 sspp.

FAUNA TOTAL

630 spp. + 43 sspp.

4827 spp. + 11 sspp.

135 spp. + 13 sspp.

Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Wildlife as Protected Wildlife, B.E. 2546 (2003). Available online in Thai: http://
www.dnp.go.th/wildlifednp/%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3/gov2.pdf
32

33
Ministerial Regulation Prescribing Certain Wildlife as Protected Wildlife (No. 3) B.E. 2558 (2015). Available online in
Thai: http://web.krisdika.go.th/data/law/law2/%ca04/%ca04-2b-2558-a0001.pdf
34

The Malayan Snail-eating Turtle Malayemys macrocephala was added to WARPA in 2015. This species was includedin the Mekong Snail-eating Turtle Malayemys subtrijuga which was first listed in 2005. The 2008 Annotated Checklist of
CITES Species includes M. macrocephala in Appendix II. Both of these species are native to Thailand.
35This analysis does not include changes to the CITES Appendices made at CoP17

36

Convention on international Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The CITES species.
https://www.cites.org/eng/disc/species.php. Accessed 19 February 2016.

20 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

Table 2: Number of CITES-listed taxa37
FAUNA

Appendix I

Appendix II

Appendix III

Total number of
CITES-listed taxa

Mammals

323

508

55

886

Birds

164

1281

25

1470

Reptiles

85

673

40

798

Amphibians

17 spp.

126 spp.

3 spp.

146Fish

16 spp.

87 spp.

0103

Invertebrates

68

2163

25

2256

FAUNA TOTAL

673

4838

148

5659

Table 3: CITES-listed fauna which are native to Thailand37
FAUNA

Total number of
CITES-listed taxa

CITES-listed taxa native CITES-listed taxa not native toto Thailand
Thailand

Mammals

886

100

786

Birds

1470

116

1354

Reptiles

798

52

746

Amphibians

146

0

146

Fish

103

12

91

Invertebrates

2256

263

1993

FAUNA TOTAL

5659

543

5116

CITES Parties must be able to enforce the provisions of the Convention. Parties should also have theability to prohibit trade of listed specimens in violation of CITES. Thailand’s WARPA lists around
41% of CITES-listed taxa (Table 4). The majority of these are contained within Appendix II (Table
5) which includes species that are not necessarily threatened with extinction at present, but may
become so if trade in these is not regulated and species which are similar in appearance to these38.
Table 4: CITES listed fauna which are listed in or under WARPA37
FAUNA

Appendix I

Appendix II

Appendix III

CITESlisted taxa
also listed
in or under
WARPA

CITESlisted taxa
not nativeto Thailand
which arelisted inor underWARPA

CITESlisted taxa
also listed
in or under
WARPA

CITESlisted taxa
not nativeto Thailand
which arelisted inor under
WARPA

Mammals

34

5

42

2

9

0

Birds

15

0

101

1

0

0

Reptiles

12

1

28

1

0

0

Amphibians

0

0

0

0

0

0

Fish

1

0

1

0

0

0

Invertebrates

0

0

2089

1828

4

4

FAUNA TOTAL

62

6

2261

1832

13

4

37
38

CITESCITESlisted taxa listed taxa
also listed not nativein or under to Thailand
WARPA
which arelisted inor underWARPA

See footnote 35
CITES. Text of the Convention, Article II Fundamental Principles
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

21

Table 5: CITES-listed taxa which are included within WARPA39
FAUNA

Appendix I

Appendix II

Appendix III

Total number of CITES-listed taxa

673

4838

148

CITES-listed taxa also listed in or under WARPA

62

2261

13

9.21%

46.73%

8.78%% of CITES-listed taxa also listed in or under
WARPA

The percentage of Appendix II-listed taxa which are listed under WARPA is significantly higher
than for Appendix I and III. All but four of these (which are butterflies) are corals, sea fans or giant
clams and are included under WARPA at a higher taxonomic level40, with a single name generally
including multiple species:• Antipatharia – black corals Appendix II-listed (250 species, none native to Thailand);• Scleractinia – stony corals: Appendix II-listed (1567 species, 250 native to Thailand);• Stylasterina - lace corals: Appendix II-listed (244 species, none native to Thailand);• Milleporina – fire corals: Appendix II-listed (14 species, two native to Thailand);• Helioporacea – blue coral: Appendix II-listed (1 species, not native to Thailand);• Gorgonacea – sea fans: Appendix III-listed (4 species, none native to Thailand); and• Tridacnidae - giant clams: Appendix II-listed (9 species, five native to Thailand).
These seven taxa include 2089 species, 257 of which are native to Thailand. Excluding the seventaxa [4838 (total number of Appendix II listed taxa in CITES) – 2089] = 2749 (table 6). Excluding
corals, sea fans and giant clams - WARPA provides protection for just 8.85% of CITES-listed species.
In addition to omitting numerous species which are not native to Thailand, WARPA also fails to
include more than 10% of CITES-listed species which are found within the Country (Table 7).
Table 6: Proportion of CITES-listed taxa which are listed in WARPA39
FAUNA

Appendix I

Appendix II (excluding coralsea fans and giant clams)

AppendixIII

Total number of CITES-listed taxa

673

2749

148

CITES-listed taxa also listed in or
under WARPA

62

261

9

% of CITES-listed taxa also listed
in or under WARPA

9.21%

9.49%

5.41%

Table 7: Number of CITES-listed species which are native to Thailand and are not listed under
WARPA39
Taxa

Total CITES-listed
species native toThailand

CITES-listed species nativeto Thailand protected in or
under WARPACITES-listed species native toThailand not protected in or
under WARPA

Mammals

100

71

29

Birds

116

115

1

Reptiles

52

38

14

Amphibia

0

0

0

Fish

12

2

10

Invertebrates

263

260

3

Total

543

486

57

39

See footnote 35

40

All but nine taxa are listed under WARPA as species or subspecies. These include seven orders, one family and one
genus. All are invertebrates and amount to 6,551 species, of which 2,089 are CITES-listed.
22 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

Excluding the invertebrates listed at higher taxonomic levels (corals, sea fans and giant clams);
WARPA includes just 12 CITES-listed species; eleven vertebrates (seven mammals, one bird andthree reptiles) and one invertebrate (butterfly) which are not-native to Thailand41 .
1. Kouprey Bos sauveli: Appendix I (Previously found in Thailand, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet
Nam. Listed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List, but is most likely extinct);
2. Sumatran Rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis (listed in WARPA as Didermocerus sumatrensis):
Appendix I (Previously found in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries, now thought tosurvive only in Indonesia);
3. Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus: Appendix I (Previously found in Thailand and other
Southeast Asian countries, now survives only in Indonesia);
4. African Elephant Loxodonta africana: Appendix I/II (Found only in Africa. Included inAppendix I, apart from the populations of Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe
which are listed in Appendix II. Trade in Appendix II specimens is limited to the conditions
listed in the Appendices.);
5. Fin Whale Balaenoptera physalus (listed under WARPA as B. physaius): Appendix I (wide
distribution; in Southeast Asia found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines);
6. Short-beaked Common Dolphin Delphinus delphius: Appendix II (wide distribution but notfound in Southeast Asia);
7. Cuvier’s Beaked Whale Ziphius cavirostris: Appendix II (wide distribution; in Southeast Asia
found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines);
8. Pallas’s Fish Eagle Haliaeetus leucoryphus: Appendix II (in Southeast Asia, found only in
Myanmar and Cambodia);
9. Loggerhead Turtle Caretta caretta: Appendix I (wide distribution; in Southeast Asia found inIndonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Philippines);
10. Burmese Peacock Softshell Nilssonia formosa (freshwater turtle) Appendix I (found only in
Myanmar);
11. Sumatran Short-tailed Python Python curtus: Appendix II (found only in Indonesia).
Note: taxonomic changes to P. curtus resulted in the splitting of this taxa into three species. Of
these, just one Brongersma’s Short-tailed Python P. brongersmai occurs in Thailand; and12. Kaiserrihind Teinopalpus imperialis (invertebrate - butterfly): Appendix II (found in Bhutan,
China, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Viet Nam).

41

All 15 preserved species did occur in Thailand at one time, but six are now listed as extinct in the country, either by
the IUCN or CITES, two (Eld’s Deer Rucervus eldii (listed in WARPA as Cervus eldi) and Sarus Crane Antigone antigone(listed in WARPA as Grus antigone)) have both been reintroduced.
TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

23

Primates

CITES lists all species of non-human primates in either Appendix I or II. Three hundred and ninety
primate species are included in the Appendices. WARPA lists 14 primate species (3.59% of thetotal listed by CITES (3.23% of the Appendix I-listed primate species and 3.76% of those listed inAppendix II)).
Thailand is home to 18 CITES-listed primate species. The four native primates that are not listed
under WARPA have all been subject to taxonomic changes in recent years:• Northern Pig-tailed Macaque Macaca leonina (split from the Southern Pig-tailed Macaque M.
nemestrina in 2001 which is listed under WARPA);• Tenasserim Luntung Trachypithecus barbei (split from the Dusky Leaf Monkey T. obscurus and islisted under WARPA by that species’ older name Presbytis obscurus);• Indochinese Luntung Trachypithecus germaini (split from the Silvery Luntung T. cristatus in 		
following changes in classification in 2001 and 2005. It is listed under WARPA by that species’ 		
older name Presbytis cristata); and• Bengal Slow Loris Nycticebus bengalensis (formerly considered a subspecies of the Greater Slow
Loris N. coucang which is listed under WARPA).
None of the six great ape species listed in the CITES Appendices (Appendix I) are listed under
WARPA.

White-handed Gibbon Hylobates lar at a wildlife attraction in Thailand

24 TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand© Jamie Bouhuys/TRAFFIC

Four of the 15 gibbon species listed in the CITES Appendices (Appendix I) are listed under
WARPA; all of these are native to Thailand.

NOVEMBER 2016

TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network,is the leading non-governmental organization
working globally on trade in wild animals andplants in the context of both biodiversity
conservation and sustainable development.
For further information contact:
TRAFFICSoutheast Asia Regional Office
Unit 3-2, 1st Floor
Jalan SS23/11, Taman SEA
47400 Petaling Jaya
Selangor, Malaysia
Telephone: (603) 7880 3940
Fax : (603) 7882 0171
Website: www.traffic.org

UK Registered Charity No. 1076722,
Registered Limited Company No. 3785518.

is a strategic alliance of

TRAFFIC Report: CITES Implementation in Thailand

25