Chief Justice Willy Mutunga speaking at the Judicial Dialogue on
Environmental and Wildlife Crimes at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi on
January 30, 2014. PHOTO | BILLY MUTAI
Chief Justice Willy Mutunga has told
wildlife campaigners to suggest “quick” amendments to the new wildlife
laws so that culprits do not take advantage of the loopholes to escape
justice.
Dr Mutunga on Thursday told the gathering of
environmentalists and conservationists that the new Wildlife Management
and Conservation Act has many good provisions that are likely to deter
poachers, but the mistakes in sections of it could still weaken its main
goals.
“There is a reason to be very hopeful that we
can turn things around. There is a new Wildlife Act. While I understand
it has many shortcomings, it is a step in the right direction,” he told
the Judicial Dialogue on Environmental and Wildlife Crimes at the Safari
Park Hotel.
“With this kind of sustained and robust
engagement among the stakeholders replacing finger pointing of
yesterday, we are certain to suggest quick amendments that will fix the
more serious loopholes and mistakes in the Act.”
Dr
Mutunga did not clarify the weaknesses, but the new Act, according to Dr
Paula Kahumbu of Wildlife Direct, has some scheduling errors which
defence lawyers could use to argue for technical dismissal of cases.
“We
have identified many mistakes in these laws which have typos that could
be used the wrong way. For example sometimes the wrong schedule is
picked and in some cases schedules are wrongly named which makes it easy
for defence lawyers to challenge prosecution charge,” she told the
Nation.
LOSS-MAKING VENTURE
The
CJ spoke just two days after the new Act claimed its first victim in
the name of a Chinese man. Mr Tang Yong Jian was this week handed a Sh20
million or a seven year jail term after he was arrested with elephant
tusks weighing 3.4 kilogrammes at the Jomo Kenyatta International
Airport. (READ: Chinese man fined Sh20M for ivory smuggling)
It
was the first time a suspected trafficker of illegal wildlife items had
been convicted under the tough laws passed recently and wildlife
enthusiasts hope this will deter poachers.
The new Act
brought in tougher penalties which authorities think will help
discourage traffickers by making poaching a loss-making venture.
Kenya
has lost more than 190 elephants to poachers since January 2012 and 29
rhinos have also been killed for their horn. Previously, a poacher could
be fined Sh30,000 or a jail term of a year. The new laws provides for
up to a life sentence or fines of up to Sh30 million.
“Overall,
it makes poaching non-profitable. But of course it depends on a lot of
things such as good implementation, investigations are done properly and
if the prosecution is done well,” argued Nehemiah Rotich, the Chairman
of the African Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW). “As a great law, it
fills that void that was exploited by poachers. We expect that the
numbers of poaching incidents will lead to deal a blow to the decline of
elephants.”
Although many poachers and traffickers of
wildlife trophies have been arrested and charged, the penalties meted to
them have been lenient.
“The new law is probably the
most severe law in the world because poachers and traffickers can go to
jail for life if convicted by a judge,” added Dr Paula Kahumbu, who
helped draft the law. “But this law is not enough; the anti-poaching
movement will have to begin with the communities in the grassroots and
their willingness to catch the perpetrators. The police, the Kenya
Wildlife Service and the prosecutions… They will have to bring good
cases to court because if they don’t do that, magistrates cannot rule
and this is where we are likely to have a breakdown.
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