FOREST CONSERVATION (PARKS AND RESERVES) - PowerPoint Presentation

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FOREST CONSERVATION (PARKS AND RESERVES)

Somalia, despite the creation of a National

Parks Agency, has no national park. The only current provision permitting the declaration of

protected areas

is to be found in the “Game Reserves” covered by articles 3 to 7 of the 1969 Law.

FOREST CONSERVATION (PARKS AND RESERVES)

Schedule 1 prescribes the boundaries of

four such reserves. As a general rule hunting is forbidden, though the Law does not seem to

facilitate enforcement

, for it authorizes many persons to enter or reside there.

FOREST CONSERVATION (PARKS AND RESERVES)

article 5 speaks of

officials on

duty and their servants; persons

ordinarily resident

in a reserve;

travelers

crossing a

reserve; persons

coming there for picnicking

,

sightseeing, bathing or other such recreational purpose; and persons lawfully engaging in

water management

, forestry or mining prospection operations.

FOREST CONSERVATION (PARKS AND RESERVES)

The protection principle extends to the vegetation, which it is prohibited to set fire to,

gather, cut

or otherwise damage wilfully or negligently. Here again the Minister may grant waivers, or

the Head

of Forest and Fauna Services may do so if the game reserve is at the same time classed as a

forest reserve (art. 7)

ENFORCEMENT; PENALTIES

Enforcement

officers:

Those empowered to carry out inspections and make official reports on offences are (under

the terms

of article 62, and as article

2 defines

“authorized officers”): forest officers, game officers,

police officers

, “

Klabos

” and any person authorized for the purpose by the Minister.

ENFORCEMENT; PENALTIES

Powers:

The powers vested in the officers mentioned may be exercised in systematic detection of

offences and even where the officer has no grounds for suspecting that an offence has been

committed, when

he has erected a barrier across a road, as he is empowered to do by article 63 in order to search

vehicles and baggage.

ENFORCEMENT; PENALTIES

Enforcement

measures:

Two possibilities are contemplated in article 62. The officer may:

- seize the animal, meat or trophy involved in the offence and any weapons or devices used

in its commission;

- arrest the person suspected of the offence even without warrant if he has reason to

believe that

he will abscond.

ENFORCEMENT; PENALTIES

Penalties:

The ordinary

courts

try offences and impose penalties prescribed by the Law.

There are principal penalties and accessory penalties (art. 66), the former consisting of fines

of from

100 to

9000

Somali shillings and a term of imprisonment uniformly set at six

months. Imprisonment

is contemplated for certain offences only and never as an automatic penalty

ENFORCEMENT; PENALTIES

The accessory penalties are:

-

the forfeiture

of any animal or trophy, etc., and weapons, implements or vehicles that

have been

used in the commission of the offence. This measure is at the discretion of the

court. Items

forfeited are sold and the proceeds paid into the Treasury;

-

cancellation

(obligatory) of any current

license

or authorization held by the person

convicted;

ENFORCEMENT; PENALTIES

The accessory penalties are:

-

prohibition

(obligatory)

on the issuance to the convicted person of any fresh

license or

authorization for a period to be set by the court between six months and three years

from the

date of the sentence. If the offence was committed by a licensed dealer in wildlife

products the disqualification is obligatorily set at three years.

Questions?