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The illegal hunting and trading of protected species is a global issue. While China is often discussed in general terms as a destination country for protected species, the sociological and criminol...

Minimal attention has been given to the ways in which the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) interacts with the informal economy. Drawing on fieldwork investigations and published reports, this article shows how the BRI interacts with the informal economy of illegal wildlife trade in tiger parts and pangolins. It also examines the part played by the practice of land-grabbing in this interaction. The article seeks to make three theoretical contributions. First, it unveils the shadow networks that operate in tandem with formal economic trade. Second, it demonstrates how the economic interdependence of states allows illicit wildlife traders to carve out governance spaces in which they impose their own managerial systems, thus making prosecution of underground wildlife businesses difficult. Third, it concludes that those responsible for the BRI should be mindful of the effect it can have on the environment, particularly on the survival of local wildlife.

Animal cruelty has been a growing concern worldwide, and is broadly defined as all socially unacceptable behaviors that are intentionally perpetrated to cause unnecessary pain, suffering, distress, and/or death to an animal. This review synthesizes more than 87 research studies identified through online databases and manual search of specific studies. Findings denote that beating, hitting, or kicking, shooting, strangling or smothering, stabbing, and sexual abusing are reported to be the commonly used methods in abusing animals. In addition, children and adolescents abused animals for different reasons; and those who exposed to domestic violence are likely to have higher rates of animal cruelty, which in turn increases their subsequent propensity to engage in delinquent behavior. Male children and adolescents are more likely than their female counterparts to commit acts of animal cruelty. It is noteworthy that early onset of animal cruelty acts is suggested to be predictive of subsequent violent or antisocial behavior. Arguably, bestiality is an act of animal abuse, or specifically as interspecies sexual abuse. More importantly, this review has noted a strong support for the increased risk of children and adolescents who commit animal cruelty to perpetrate interpersonal violence against human victims in later life. Five key theoretical models (i.e., social learning theory, frustration theory, deviance generalization hypothesis, graduation hypothesis, and sexual polymorphous theory) are discussed to explain the link between childhood and/or adolescent animal cruelty and subsequent violence against human victims in adulthood. Implications for research and future research are discussed.

This multi‐authored contribution explores what the COVID‐19 pandemic demands of critical inquiry with a focus on the more‐than‐human. We show how COVID‐19 is a complex series of multispecies encounters shaped by humans, non‐human animals, and of course viruses. Central to these encounters is a politics of difference in which certain human lives are protected and helped to flourish while others, both human and animal, are forgotten if not sacrificed. Such difference encompasses practices of racialisation and racism, healthcare austerity, the circulation of capital, border‐making, intervention into non‐human nature, wildlife trade bans, anthropocentrism, and the exploitation of animal test subjects. The contributions highlight how COVID‐19 provides a needed opportunity to unite new materialist and anti‐racist, anti‐colonial scholarship as well as reimagine more radically sustainable multispecies futures. This requires embracing anti‐colonial humility, confronting debts owed to lab animal frontline workers, and rethinking economic systems that helped unleash COVID‐19 and ensured it became a disaster.

Set against the theoretical framework of situational crime prevention theory, this paper analyses the illegal sale of worked ivory products in Hong Kong, which is the city with the highest number of worked ivory products for retail sale in the world. Based on qualitative interviews and open sources, this paper shows that legalising the sale of products made from mammoth tusk and pre-1989 ivory, the low risk of detection, high rewards, justifications made by offenders, and unique situational conditions have collectively (and indirectly) created opportunities for traders to sell worked ivory items illegally in Hong Kong. This paper concludes by offering a discussion on why the illegal sale of ivory products cannot be prevented with situational crime prevention preventive strategies in the long run.

Much attention has been devoted to understanding the opportunities brought about by OBOR, yet how such prospects can lead to the manifestation of crime remains largely unexplored. This chapter highlights the potential threats that OBOR can bring to endangered and protected wildlife residing in member states. The illegal tiger parts trade in Lhasa (Tibet) will be drawn upon to demonstrate the magnitude of this trade and the operation of the criminal networks involved. This chapter shows how tiger parts are smuggled across countries in the region into mainland China and in doing so, focuses on the theoretical question of how the criminal networks establish trust within their operating network in trading tiger parts illegally.

There is increasing focus on altering consumer behavior within the conservation sector working to combat illegal wildlife trade (IWT). In this review we highlight how demand reduction campaigns can build on and reproduce problematic stereotypes that create and perpetuate a figure we characterize as the “Asian Super Consumer.” While there are numerous studies critiquing disturbing and racist narratives of particular actors engaged in the supply-side of IWT, the problematic ways in which racism can steer debates characterizing illegal wildlife product consumers remains generally under-explored. We focus on key examples of ivory demand reduction campaigns in China. We argue for more culturally-sensitive understandings of illegal wildlife product consumers and their motivations. Culturally-nuanced approaches in demand reduction campaigns are essential not just because they may be more effective, but because they move beyond on-going violent histories of cultural misrepresentation and racism.

This chapter sets the contextual background of the illegal wildlife trade in China and examines in detail, the demand and supply of wildlife products within the country. Reference is made to the usage of wildlife products in traditional Chinese medicine, collector’s items, and local delicacies, and as captive pets. This chapter also lays out the organization of the book.

This chapter provides an overview of China’s position within the global illegal wildlife trade from two perspectives: (1) China’s geographical location and its relationship with the illegal wildlife trade; (2) the responses from the Chinese government to tackle the trade.

This chapter turns to explore the operation of seven distributing networks specialized in the illegal supply of tiger parts products. The focus of this chapter is on the network organizations of criminal networks and their mode of operation in supplying tiger parts products across three different cities in Mainland China and how they employ different mechanisms to avoid the risk of enforcement.

This chapter provides insights into the actual transaction of worked ivory products against the theoretical framework of situational crime prevention (SCP) theory. The global illegal trade in ivory can be broken down into four stages: (a) poaching of the elephant tusks—capturing an elephant in its natural habitat in order to remove its tusks, which results in the death of the animal; (b) smuggling poached tusks—which involves smuggling tusks out of the source country into the destination countries; (c) processing raw ivory into worked ivory products; and (d) selling worked ivory items to buyers

This chapter contextualizes the development of green criminology and the study of environmental crime. In specific, it examines the stages of the illegal wildlife trade: (1) poaching, (2) smuggling, (3) processing, and (4) online distribution.

The chapter of this article is situated in light of the illegal transaction of protected wildlife in China for consumption as a delicacy. In trusting the suppliers to deliver the protected wildlife they ordered, consumers face two types of risks: (a) the risk of enforcement (facing a maximum of ten years’ imprisonment) and/or (b) the risk of being cheated of their money. This chapter focuses on the second question. The consumption of protected wildlife occurs in designated restaurants, so how do consumers know for certain that the restaurants are serving the protected wildlife they ordered? Given the difficulties in distinguishing between the flavour of protected wildlife and legitimate sources of meat (this point will be elaborated on later in the chapter), what are the mechanisms that help consumers of protected wildlife trust that the restaurant is honouring their agreement? Based on qualitative interviews with consumers and suppliers of protected wildlife in China and open sources, this study concludes that consumers rely heavily on the reputation of the restaurant.

This article explores theoretical and empirical features of informal value transfer systems, the illegal transfer of money between jurisdictions. It identifies the trust relationships between the actors involved and discusses four mechanisms used to signal trustworthiness. It then applies these theoretical considerations to China, where transferring money abroad cannot exceed a limited amount, and the process is costly. While most authors stress the importance of trust, we find that informal mechanisms of credible commitments, such as reputation, repeated interaction, hostage taking and sharing compromising information, are used. These strategies underpin an industry that transfers billions of dollars out of China every year. We found no evidence of use of violence or Mafia involvement. The article is based on field research, interviews with bankers and customers, and a review of official documents and news reports in Chinese and English.

Why would a consumer trust that his/her supplier would honor their agreement in illegal transactions? What mechanisms do consumers rely on to enhance the credibility of their agreements? In this article, these questions are examined in the light of illegal transactions of protected wildlife in China for consumption as a delicacy. Based on interviews with actors involved in this illegal market and open sources, this article shows that consumers rely on the supplier’s reputation to access protected wildlife, along with their reputation of having the culinary skills necessary to cook the wildlife in order to enhance the credibility of their agreements.

The funding information provided at the Acknowledgement section in the original article is inaccurate.

The Internet is being exploited as a medium for illegal wildlife trade, and protected wildlife can now be sold and bought across social media and e-commerce platforms. This article is a 13-mo study on the online trade of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)–listed chelonians on a localized Hong Kong website. During this period, more than 400 posts were collected, with more than 300 posts selling CITES-listed chelonians. Based on our findings, we give 2 general recommendations in enforcing the online illegal wildlife trade: 1) increase knowledge of CITES regulations on pet trade forums and 2) introduce digital solutions to monitor pet trade forums.

The thesis is a study of how Chinese illegal tiger parts trading networks are organized. In particular, this thesis tests in a qualitative manner the causal relationship between three independent variables and the network organizations of these markets. The three independent variables are “ethnicity”, “level of enforcement” and “proximity to the source country”. The thesis also discusses the dynamics of the illegal transactions of tiger parts products. Legitimate meditators or dispute resolutions mechanisms are lacking in the underworld so the risks, which the parties undertake during trading, are far higher. This thesis explores how illegal transactions are enforced, carried out and honored in this trade. In order to map the organization of the tiger trade, I conducted fieldwork in three trading hubs across China: Lhasa. Kunming and Xining. I discovered five tiger parts trading networks, three of which specialized in the trading of tiger skins and two in tiger bones. Within these networks, the level of perceived but not the actual level of risk influences the decisions of the actors in the network. Entry into the network is easy when the perceived level of enforcement is low. In these settings, there is no ethnic restriction for entering the network; the supplier is willing to trade with anyone with a trustworthy reputation. On the other hand, accessibility to the network is strictly controlled when actors perceive a high level of enforcement in their operating environment. Under this setting, the organization of the network becomes more exclusive and ethnically homogenous, as shown in the Tibetan tiger skin-trading network in Lhasa and the tiger bone-trading network in Kunming. The proximity of the tiger source country to the re-distribution sites (fieldwork cities) also influences the organization of the networks. When the level of enforcement is low and the tiger source country is far away from the re-distribution sites, a monetary deposit is required in order to show that the buyer is serious about his/her request, as shown by the tiger skin-trading network in Kunming.

On 3 October 2014, peaceful pro-democracy protestors were attacked by thugs in Mong Kok, a working-class neighbourhood of Hong Kong. Using this event, we explore whether the attackers came from the same neighbourhood and mobilized to protect their illegal business activities, and whether the attackers were affiliated to the Triads. We conclude that the attackers were low-level Triads affiliates from outside Mong Kok and were paid to attack the protesters. While several scholars have suggested that Triads are in inexorable decline in post-1997 Hong Kong, we suggest that they might have found a new role as enforcer of unpopular policies and repression of democratic protests in the context of a drift towards authoritarianism in Hong Kong. The paper is based on field interviews with Triad members, businesspeople and activists, and on press reports and official documents.