Vietnam, US, int’l community launch “Operation Game Change” to protect wildlife

High-ranking officials from Vietnam and the United States, together with the international wildlife community, joined hands to launch “Operation Game Change” (OGC) in Hanoi on Tuesday to mark World Wildlife Day.

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Under the “OGC” campaign, governments, NGOs, students, and celebrities from Vietnam, the U.S., and South Africa will work together to stop the illegal trade in rhino horn while encouraging everyone to cease buying all endangered species, the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi said in its media release issued the same day.

OGC will culminate with a nationally televised event and concert in September to coincide with World Rhino Day, the press release said.

U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius and officials from the Vietnamese Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development and Natural Resources and Environment, and representatives of relevant international organizations took part in the launch ceremony.

The campaign is part of the continuous cooperation between Vietnam and the U.S. in eliminating the trade of wildlife in the region and the world.

Ambassador Osius said both the U.S. and Vietnam are interested in preventing and combating the illegal wildlife trade, adding that crimes related to wild animal trafficking have undermined the rule of law in all countries, including the two nations.

Vietnamese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat applauded the OGC during the ceremony.

Pictured above with Deputy Chief of Mission Claire Pierangelo (C) are Nguyen Tuan Nam (R) and Nguyen Ha Nhung, who visited South Africa last year along with other Vietnamese students to learn about the plight of the rhino. Photo:

U.S. Embassy in Hanoi

“Vietnam is now the chair of the ASEAN Wildlife Law Enforcement Network, and we are determined to fulfill our duties under the Vietnamese Government’s instructions,” Minister Phat said.

“The trade and use of wildlife and their products have recently trended downward, but we should make more efforts to gain better achievements for the sake of the world today and our next generations in the future.”

(Youth) newspaper, Steve Galster, an American who is the executive director of Asia-based Freeland Foudation, a frontline organization working for a world that is free of wildlife trafficking and human slavery, expressed his hope that the U.S. and Vietnam will become allies not only in fighting wildlife trafficking but also in combating organized crime.

Commenting on Vietnamese festivals at which organizers kill animals as offerings to gods, Galster said he personally does not favor these actions.

According to Freeland, China, the U.S., and Vietnam are three countries that lead the world in consuming products coming from the illegal trade of wildlife.

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