Outdated legislation: ‘Wildlife law blocking conservation’
“The existing wildlife law is outdated and we need to update it to overcome issues hindering efforts for conservation in Gilgit-Baltistan,” said Abdul Hameed, the secretary forest of Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B).
Hameed, who chaired the workshop, said that the views of the real shareholders, especially the communities, would be incorporated in the law, adding that the document would be a milestone in G-B’s history.
The wildlife laws being implemented in the region date back to 1975.
About 25 experts, including senior wildlife and forest department officials, representatives of NGOs and community leaders participated in the workshop organised by a government funded project for the mountain areas conservation in Gilgit.
“There are a number of bottlenecks in the law and we must remove them to make it a perfect document, capable of protecting our precious wildlife,” said Ismail Zafar, the region’s conservator of forests. He said that the existing law suggests a minimal penalty against those who have deserted the once flourishing forests at Diamer. Similarly, he said the law isn’t clear about the extraction of precious medicinal plants.
Jamil Ahmed, a community leader from Chilas said that the rights of the people of the valley must be ensured while updating the law. Abu Zar, another community representative from Gojal asked for the strict implementation of laws to stop illegal hunting.
Earlier, project director Khalil Ahmed briefed the participants about the existing status of the law saying that it has not been revised since 1975. “G-B is one of the most resource-rich regions and earn billions of dollars annually from these wild resources. But our wildlife law is unable to meet the changing scenario,” he said.
The participants reviewed the documents, focusing on its 44 clauses which mention restrictions on hunting, prohibition of using a hawk or dogs without a license, constitution and functions of the board and its fund.
The law states that any protected animal found dead in the wilderness will be the property of the government. The meeting decided to form a committee to further refine it before submitting it to the assembly for approval.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 17th, 2011.
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