Southeast Asian MPs join wildlife rangers in the field A group of MPs from the ASEAN region are in Thailand to witness first-hand the work of the country's wildlife park rangers. The three-day event, organised by the environmental NGO Freeland, comes after a decision by ASEAN ministers earlier this year to rank wildlife and timber trafficking on the same level as arms, drugs and people smuggling. Though arrests for wildlife crime have increased over the past decade, the region's critically endangered species such as tigers, rhinos and elephants continue to drop in number. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES.