"Stop the Illegal Wildlife Trade: How China’s overseas Special Economic Zones risk helping traffickers", 6 April 2021

[...] In a research paper published in 2018, Mr Walsh and two other academics used a SEZ in Boten, Laos, as an example to document how China uses SEZs along its border to facilitate illegal wildlife trade. The study found that medical use is the most dominant purpose for wildlife trade in the SEZ.

“The findings confirm the important and active role Boten plays in the illegal wildlife trade, where an inherent link with China was apparent,” the paper concluded. “Lao’s economic zones are known to cater to largely Chinese markets, including for the illegal sale of wildlife.”

Steve Galster, chair of the Freeland Foundation, said SEZs had a history of facilitating illegal wildlife trade. “These SEZs reduce custom inspection, which allows trade to be sped up,” he told the Independent. [...]