Comparing discourse to officer perceptions: the problems of war and militarization in wildlife crime enforcement

‘War’ has become a common model and metaphor for biodiversity conservation in Africa. By discussing the specific challenges of wildlife crime enforcement in Uganda, this article challenges the ‘war on wildlife crime’ discourse. It concludes that in the context of Uganda, the discourse is profoundly...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Runhovde, Siv Rebekka (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2017
In: Critical criminology
Year: 2017, Volume: 25, Issue: 2, Pages: 275-291
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Keywords:
Wilderei
Nationalpark
Organisiertes Verbrechen
Schutzzone
Wildtiere
Illegal Hunting
National Park
Organize Crime
Protected Area
Wildlife Crime
Description
Summary:‘War’ has become a common model and metaphor for biodiversity conservation in Africa. By discussing the specific challenges of wildlife crime enforcement in Uganda, this article challenges the ‘war on wildlife crime’ discourse. It concludes that in the context of Uganda, the discourse is profoundly unhelpful because of a lack of alignment between the problems highlighted by Ugandan law enforcement officers interviewed and the solutions typically favoured in the ‘wars on crime’. Most wildlife crimes are subsistence-driven and interviewees’ requests are for basic equipment and conventional capacity building. Findings demonstrate that the language of war, militarization and securitization should be used with caution as it risks constructing an image of wildlife crime that is misleading - and one that prevents responses that are effective in the long term.
Item Description:Literaturverzeichnis: Seite 288-291
ISSN:1572-9877
DOI:10.1007/s10612-017-9360-0