Workshop on Forest and Wildlife Crime in Khammouane province

The Office of the Supreme Peoples Prosecutor and ILSTA, jointly organised a workshop on forest and wildlife crime in Khammouane province. The workshop was conducted in Thakek and included a fact finding mission the Nakai Nam Theurn National Park, the largest national Park in Lao PDR, to visit areas of illegal activity.
The course was opened by Mr Vilasith Singgavongxay, Director of the Institute of Research and Training for the Office of the Supreme People’s Prosecutor and Richard Philippart, President of ILSTA. The workshop comprised of 41 participants from the Office of Supreme People’s Prosecutor, the Department of Forest Inspection, the Provincial Office of Forest Inspection, the Lao Customs Department, the Environmental Police, the Border Army and management and law enforcement personnel from Khammouane’s national parks and protected areas. Khammouane province is known as a highly important biodiversity area and features four protected areas including the Nakai Nam Theurn National Park and the annamite mountains bordering Vietnam.
The aim of the workshop was to partner law enforcement officers from the protected areas with the provincial wildlife enforcement network to address challenges in enforcing wildlife and forest crime in the protected areas and prosecuting offenders.
The protected areas face numerous challenges that include human wildlife conflict, the livelihoods of communities living in and around the park, land conversion for mining and hydro power and commercial logging and hunting. Mining activities in and around the park include limestone quarrying and mining for precious mineral such as gold, silver and tin.
Human animal conflict occurs when wildlife and humans live in close proximity to each other. This may result in the destruction of crops and the loss of livelihood to the farmer. Retaliation often leads to animals being killed as farmers seek to protect their crops.
The workshop was a great success with law enforcement agencies committing to working closer with protected area management to address law enforcement issues.