Journalist Ingrid Gercama speaks to iMEdD about investigations that revealed how wildlife crime is not limited to distant regions but is thriving even in the Balkans.
Featured image: Petros Toufexis/ iMEdD
In Albania, some individuals purchase baby lions illegally to keep as pets and show them off on social media. On the plains of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italian hunters use illegal devices to lure quails. Local communities know but stay silent; activist groups speak out when they get the chance, while authorities struggle to tackle these specialized wildlife crimes.
The above information was revealed in investigations by different journalistic teams, carried out with the support Journalismfund Europe and published in Balkan and international media outlets New Lines Magazine and amfora.al in one case, and eTrafika.net and BIRN in the other.
The two investigative projects revealed that the crimes threatening wildlife are not confined to the jungles of the Amazon but also happen in the Balkans. Ingrid Gercama, now an investigative journalist at the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), who participated as a freelancer in both investigations, explained to iMEdD the steps behind each investigation and how they uncovered crimes with victims who cannot speak for themselves: the animals.
See more videos on iMEdD’s channel on YouTube.
