Hanoi (VNA) - Fourteen international and domestic conservation organisations sent a petition on May 7 to the People’s Committee of Long An province in the Mekong Delta proposing that its agencies take more drastic measures in putting an end to the illegal wildlife trade, especially wild birds, at the Thanh Hoa farm produce market.

According to the petition, the Thanh Hoa farm produce market has for many years not operated under its original purpose but as a place to trade wild birds, including rare species protected by law. Names such as “hell market” and “bird hell” have long been associated with the market. The market is said to house thousands of endangered animals from the Mekong Delta. It has about 40 stalls with hundreds of cages imprisoning rare birds, Asian openbills, turtles, and snakes. These stalls are also “slaughterhouses”, serving drinking parties with alcohol made from the blood of the animals. Nature conservation organisations and the media have for many years monitored activities at the market and publicised the illegal wildlife trade taking place. VietnamPlus, after discovering the illegal trade of rare and precious birds at the market, published a series of reports and contacted the local Forest Protection Department to ask them to conduct investigations and eliminate the “bird hell”. The Department then sent a task force to the site to carry out reconnaissance and organise a secret inspection, which ended with the seizing of wildlife listed in Vietnam’s Red Book. Following directions from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the People’s Committee of Long An province then committed to and directed the implementation of measures to rectify the illegal wildlife trade at the market. However, as happened many times before, after closing for a period of time, the illegal wildlife trade resumed at the market and changed from being overt to covert. According to the petition, in the face of the serious nature of the COVID-19 pandemic on a global scale, on July 23, 2020, the Prime Minister issued Directive No 29/CT-TTg on a number of urgent solutions on wildlife management, requesting a bold move to “resolutely eliminate illegal wildlife trading and market areas.” Accordingly, the Prime Minister requested the municipal and provincial People’s Committees “strengthen the control of exploiting, hunting, catching, transporting, storing, trading, consuming, and using wild animals,” to completely smash illegal wildlife trade rings.   Most recently, in March, the Vietnamese Government, international organisations, and domestic partners signed the One Health Partnership Framework for the prevention of zoonotic diseases, or diseases transmitted from animals to humans, in the 2021-2025 period. “The definitive handling of illegal wildlife trade at the Thanh Hoa farm produce market is therefore extremely urgent in implementing the Prime Minister’s Directive No 29/CT-TTg and to realise the One Health Cooperation Framework to ensure public health and safety,” the petition states. Fourteen conservation organisations have proposed that the People’s Committee of Long An province take more drastic measures to permanently close illegal wildlife stalls at the market. “In 2020, Long An province was ranked third nationally in the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI),” the petition read. “We believe that, with the final settlement of illegal wildlife trade at Thanh Hoa market, the reputation of the province will continue to be further enhanced, not only in administration and economic management but also in environmental protection and the conservation of wild animals, contributing to enhancing local security and order.”/.