Beginning in May of this year, K’S PATH began receiving calls from concerned citizens regarding the sale of a Eurasian Brown Bear (pictured) being offered for the sum of KD2000. K’S PATH launched an extensive investigation aimed at locating the bear and helping the government to seize the animal. The investigation discovered the bear living in a small cage in Kebd, exposed to the sun, chained by the neck, living on a diet of rice, and only offered water twice per day. After reviewing the evidence presented by K’S PATH, the MOI Police force, along with representatives from the Kuwait Environment Protection Agency and the Kuwait Zoo began the process of confiscating the bear and several other illegal animals being housed at the same location. The bear is now being housed in the Kuwait Zoo, and K’S PATH is attempting to find a suitable sanctuary in the natural range of the Eurasian Brown Bear.
The illegal trade in wildlife is a major concern around the world, raking in over 10 billion US Dollars per year, making it the third most lucrative illegal trade behind the arms and drug trades. According to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS):
“Today, anything large enough to be eaten or lucrative enough to be sold is hunted on a massive scale for its meat, skin, fur or feathers, for the pet trade, or as an ingredient in traditional medicines,” said Elizabeth Bennett, director for WCS’s Hunting and Wildlife Trade Program. “Wildlife populations are crashing, and wild areas increasingly are losing their wildlife, becoming devoid of vibrancy and life.”
The seizure of this bear in Kuwait represents a significant step forward in the fight against illegal animal trafficking. In the past decade, Kuwait has become a significant importer in the trade. Available on Kuwait’s black market are lions, tigers, cheetahs, white lions, white tigers, bears, jaguars, endangered birds, gazelles, jackals, chimpanzees, baboons, and all manner of other illegal endangered or protected animals. Most animals are stolen from their mothers while they are still small enough to fit into tiny smuggling compartments, in suitcase linings, or in specialized pockets beneath travelers’ clothes. The result is mortality among smuggled endangered species in excess of 80%.
Most smuggled animals are transported in dangerously cramped conditions. More than 80% die in route.
K’S PATH and its partners are working to stop the illegal animal trade in Kuwait by rescuing animals, cooperating with the government to pursue enforcement of CITES, and educating the public about the trade. To find out more about K’S PATH and our work in fighting the illegal animal trade, visit www.kspath.org or call 6700-1622.