Ecuador court case: illegal transport of sea cucumbers (Galápagos)

Summary

In 2016, two people attempted to smuggle 10,000 sea cucumbers out of the Galapagos Islands and transport them to the Puerto Baquerizo Moreno airport in San Cristóbal (Galapagos). The sea cucumbers were found by police in boxes. The suspects were prosecuted for the crimes against flora and fauna in danger of extinction, and convicted with a maximum penalty of three years.

The criminal court based in the Canton of Guayaquil handed down the judgment, and noted sea cucumbers are a species listed in Appendix III of the CITES Convention and that the crime was committed in an area within ​​the National System of Protected Areas. The judge imposed a fine and ordered comprehensive reparation measures. The custodial sentence was conditionally suspended, and the defendants appealed to the Provincial Court of Guayas; however, the court denied the appeal.

In the ruling, the court cited Art. 71 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador which states that “Nature or Pacha Mama, where life is reproduced and carried out, has the right to have its existence fully respected and the maintenance and regeneration of its vital cycles, structure, functions and evolutionary processes. Any person, community, people or nationality may demand that the public authority comply with the rights of nature” (Page 13 of appeal).