聯合國與國際刑警組織在24日發表的一份報告中警告說，除非立即採取行動打擊非法民兵、抑制盜獵行為並保護棲地，否則非洲剛果盆地的大猩猩將會在10至15年內消失。
非法的伐木、採礦與木炭生產，以及對野生動物肉類需求量的增加，再加上致命的伊波拉出血熱，使剛果盆地的大猩猩數量下降速度，比聯合國環境規劃署八年前的預估更快。
在這篇題為：「大猩猩的最後一戰── 剛果盆地的環境犯罪與衝突的快速反應評估報告」中認為，剛果民主共和國東部民兵所進行的非法貿易，價值高達數億美金。
國際刑警組織環境犯罪署主管希金斯(David Higgins)說：「組織犯罪集團蔑視國內與國際野生動物保育法的結果，使大猩猩成為另一個受害者。國際刑警組織的特殊地位，是為了促進國際間相互協調、團結合作的執行法律。」
希金斯說：「我們致力於打擊全球範圍內一切形式的環境犯罪。」國際刑警組織的任務，是提供所有188個成員國執法機構間的情報交流、行動支援與能力建立，來對付這樣的世界性犯罪行為。
這份報告發現，走私或是非法所開採的鑽石、黃金與鈳鉭鐵礦(譯者按：電阻器的原料，用於製造電腦、手機等)，會隨著木材跨過邊境，再經由中間人和公司，最後運到亞洲國家、歐盟與海灣等地區。
這些非法交易之所以存在的部分原因，是因為由民兵所控制的邊境，收取了大量的通行費，每年大約有1400至5000萬美金，這些資金有部分資助了走私的活動。
這份基於科學數據並包括衛星調查、訪談、調查與證據分析的報告，在聯合國生物多樣性年之際，已送交聯合國安理會。
該報告也包含了一些正面的消息。一份全新且尚未發表的調查結果指出，在剛果民主共和國東部、衝突區的中心地區，發現了750隻瀕危的東部低地大猩猩。
報告中也提到了關於維龍加(Virungas)山地大猩猩的好消息。經歷了幾段動盪時期後，這些生存在盧安達、烏干達與剛果邊境交界的動物，由於三個國家的跨界合作，包括加強執法以及與當地社區利益共享，成功存活了下來。
然而，近年來有超過190名維龍加國家公園的巡護員在執勤時殉職，兇手被認為是那些擔心收入減少的民兵。
聯合國環境規劃署和國際刑警組織指出，必須在當地動員大量的資源、培訓執法人員和巡護員，並建立可供長久使用的基地。
這包括以資金支持並調查該區域的跨國環境犯罪，包含非洲以及以外地區的有關公司，一直到消費者之間的所有供應鏈。
吉利馬札羅山(Kilimanjaro)附近、坦尚尼亞境內姆韋卡(Mweka)的非洲野生動物管理學院(The College of African Wildlife Management)正與聯合國環境規劃署合作，研發對抗盜獵者的全新策略，以作為發展新報告的一部份。該學院為整個東非地區訓練巡護員。
DOHA, Qatar, March 24, 2010 (ENS) - Gorillas could disappear from most of Africa's Greater Congo Basin within 10 to 15 years unless immediate action is taken to combat the illegal activities of militias, counter poaching and safeguard gorilla habitats, the United Nations and the international police organization INTERPOL warned in a report released today.
Illegal logging, mining, charcoal production and increased demand for bushmeat, plus deadly outbreaks of Ebola hemorrhagic fever are wiping out Congo Basin gorillas faster than the UN Environment Programme estimated just eight years ago.
The Rapid Response Assessment report, entitled "The Last Stand of the Gorilla - Environmental Crime and Conflict in the Congo Basin," finds that militias in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo are behind much of the illegal trade, estimated to be worth several hundred million dollars a year.
David Higgins, manager of the INTERPOL Environmental Crime Programme, said, "The gorillas are yet another victim of the contempt shown by organized criminal gangs for national and international laws aimed at defending wildlife. The law enforcement response must be internationally co-coordinated, strong and united, and INTERPOL is uniquely placed to facilitate this."
"We are committed to combating all forms of environmental crime on a global scale," Higgins said. "INTERPOL is mandated to do so by providing law enforcement agencies in all our 188 member countries with the intelligence exchange, operational support, and capacity building needed to combat this world-spanning crime."
The report finds that smuggled or illegally-harvested minerals such as diamonds, gold and coltan along with timber ends up crossing borders, passing through middle men and companies before being shipped on to countries in Asia, the European Union and the Gulf.
The illegal trade is in part due to the militias being in control of border crossings which, along with demanding road tax payments, may be generating between $14 million and $50 million annually, which in turn helps fund their activities.
The report, issued during the UN's International Year of Biodiversity, is based on scientific data, new surveys including satellite surveys, interviews, investigations and an analysis of evidence supplied to the UN Security Council.
The report does contain some positive news. A new and as yet unpublished survey in one area of the eastern DRC, in the center of the conflict zone, has discovered 750 critically endangered Eastern lowland gorillas.
The report also contains good news about the mountain gorillas in the Virungas. These animals which cling to survival in an area which is shared by Rwanda, Uganda and DRC, have survived during several periods of instability as a result of transboundary collaboration among the three countries, including better law enforcement and benefit sharing with the local communities.
But more than 190 Virunga park rangers have been killed in recent years in the line of duty, with the perpetrators thought to be militias concerned about a loss of revenue.
Both UNEP and INTERPOL say that significant resources and training for law enforcement personnel and rangers on the ground must be mobilized, including long-term capacity building.
This includes funds for supporting and investigating transnational environmental crime in the region, including the companies concerned in Africa and beyond, all the way through the supply chain to the consumers.
The College of African Wildlife Management at Mweka, Tanzania near Mt. Kilimanjaro has worked with UNEP in developing new programs for anti-poaching as part of the development of the new report. The college trains rangers across the entire eastern Africa region.
