Bronx, NY – July 1, 2013 – The following statement has been released by Dr. Cristián Samper, President and CEO of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), in response to the Executive Order issued today by President Obama that will aim to curtail forest elephant poaching in Central Africa and other forms of wildlife trafficking by dedicating $10 million for law enforcement capacity and creating a wildlife trafficking task force at the highest levels of the U.S. government, among other directives.

Dr. Samper said, “For all of the terrible news about elephants coming from Central Africa over the past several months, it is heartening to know that President Obama and his administration are calling for a coordinated strategy to stop the slaughter. We know that the problem is widespread and will take sustained efforts to curtail it, and the creation of a Presidential Task Force on Wildlife Trafficking is a much-needed and welcome step in the right direction.

“In order to save elephants and rhinos, it is imperative to stop the killing, stop the trafficking, and stop the demand. Without addressing each of these three segments, well-organized poaching networks will continue to decimate these dwindling populations.

“We thank President Obama and his administration for acting in defense of threatened elephants, rhinos and other wildlife and look forward to working with them on future actions to solve this crisis.”