Majority thinks current penalties on wildlife poachers adequate: Nida Poll

A slight majority of people are of the opinion that the current legal penalties on poachers of wildlife are already adequate, according to the result of a survey carried out by National Institute of Development Administration, or Nida Poll.

The poll was conducted on Feb 8-9 on 1,250 people aged 18 and over of various occupations and levels of education throughout the country in the wake of the poaching scandal involving Italian-Thai Development Plc (ITD) chief executive officer Premchai Karnasuta.

According to the existing law, those found to have poached wildlife in restricted areas are liable to a jail term not exceeding five years or a fine of not more than 50,000 baht or both.

To the question of whether the current penalties on wildlife poachers are adequate, a slight majority of respondents, 51.28%, said "yes"; 47.52% said they are too lenient, saying that the jail term should be between 5-20 years and the maximum fine should be 1 million baht; and 1.20% were uncertain or had no comment.

Asked about their confidence in agencies responsible for suppressing wildlife poaching and trespassing in wildlife reserves, 19.04% said they have a lot of confidence in them; 31.04% said they are fairly confident in them; 36.96% said they have little confidence and 11.60% have no confidence in them at all. 1.36% were uncertain or had no comment.

On ways of tackling these issues, 54.32% of respondents suggested that the law should be strictly enforced, while 33.60% said the people's awareness of forest and wildlife conservation should be promoted.

Asked whether they are confident that law will be enforced equally on the Thai people, 68.88% of the respondents said "no"; 27.84% said "yes"; and 3.28% were uncertain or had no comment.