KARACHI: A large part of the recently confiscated consignment of dried body parts of freshwater turtles had been collected through dealers operating in Sindh and Punjab, sources told Dawn.

The two provinces, according to the sources, serve as major hotspots for illegal turtle trade that has been going on in the country for many years.

Read: Fight to save endangered Indus dolphins, turtles

At present, three Pakistanis involved in illegal turtle trade were facing trial in courts in Bangkok that was considered to be a wholesale market for illegal wildlife species in the world, said the sources.

These cases, they said, were highlighted in an international report published last year after which Pakistani CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) Management Authority had written a letter to their counterparts in Thailand to provide details on these cases.

Also read: ‘A $15 billion industry’

The authority had not yet received a response, though it had also sent a reminder in this regard, said the sources.

In a recent development in illegal turtle trade, the Hong Kong authorities have requested Pakistani officials to receive over 500 live freshwater turtles (black pond species) that are believed to have been smuggled out of Pakistan.

Also read: Hong Kong officials ask Pakistan to receive 751 smuggled turtles

“A large part of the consignment confiscated at the Karachi port was acquired from Sindh and Punjab. Districts of Sukkur, Larkana, Kandhkot, Kashmore, Thatta and Badin in Sindh while Multan, D.G. Khan, Bhakkar, Mianwali and areas along Taunsa, Chashma and Punjnad in Punjab are important areas for this illegal business,” said Sindh wildlife conservator Javed Ahmed Mahar.

Turtles were trapped, killed and supplied to dealers by poverty-stricken communities living in these areas, he added.

Population of freshwater turtles (the country has eight such species), according to Mr Mahar, has declined by about 80pc in the country and it is believed the collections for this particular consignment had been made over a period of time. “They are even targeting baby turtles now in a bid to maximize their monetary benefit,” he said.

A Hong Kong-bound consignment of dried turtle body parts, weighing about two tonnes, was confiscated last month by the customs authorities at Karachi airport. The consignment belonged to the M/S Hongda Trading Company and the authorities arrested a man in the case, currently pending with a court.

The dried body parts of about over 4,000 turtles were identified as those of Indian narrow-headed softshell turtles, a critically endangered and protected reptile in the country. Officials at that time had said the seizure was the largest confiscation involving turtles in the country’s history.

Start of smuggling

Three past surveys carried out under the ministry of environment to investigate freshwater turtle trade in 2007, 2008 and 2009, indicate that the illegal business of turtles had been going on in Sindh, Punjab and Kyber Pakhtunkhwa.

According to the surveys, the business of turtle parts started in Punjab and Sindh in 2003 and since then the turtles are being captured and their body parts smuggled out of the country.

The business of softshell turtle parts was found to be at its peak and expanding to other parts of the country as well, with dealers focusing on involving local fishermen in the trade.

At that time, it was observed that almost all the main dealers belonged to Lahore, which was seen as the gateway for export to China.

In Sindh, the stretch of the Indus river and its major canals and tributaries including Kotri, Sukkur and Guddu barrages were studied in the 2009 survey which revealed that people who exploited freshwater turtles belonged to marginalised communities of Shikari, Rawara, Barha, Gurgula, Gogra, Jogi, Guruwanro and Baagri.

“Fishermen communities belonging to Mallah and Mir Bahar tribes also catch turtles as a by-catch. They have very limited livelihood options that include weaving of carpets, selling bangles and begging, in addition to fishing and hunting of wildlife.

“Some people work as tenants and labourers on daily wages. The research indicated that turtle trade has been taking place throughout the region while at the major barrages of the Indus river this business was introduced in 2003.

“In Sindh, all the turtle trade is destined for Karachi, from where turtles and their body parts are exported to other countries (that has a demand for turtle parts for food consumption and for use in traditional medicines),” said the 2009 survey report.

According to the survey authored by Uzma Noureen, a senior wetlands biologist, poverty is the only reason for people’s involvement in this trade. “These homeless people are willing to leave the business if any other livelihood opportunity is provided to them. If this target group is addressed through community based conservation, provided with better livelihood opportunities and with education and awareness, they can help in protecting the freshwater turtles of Pakistan better than others,” she observed in the survey.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2015

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