(Geneva, Switzerland – 19 March 2004) – This week, the 50th Standing Committee for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) discussed many issues pursuant to the ivory trade, which suggest that there is still a lot of work to do before South Africa, Namibia and Botswana would be allowed to sell 60 tons of stockpiled ivory.
In November 2002, CITES gave permission to South Africa, Namibia and Botswana to sell their 60 ton ivory stockpiles, but not before May 2004 and not until certain conditions had been met. The conditions include:
A system to monitor illegal killing of elephants.
Only registered government stocks originating from exporting countries should be sold.
Any ivory seized or of unknown origin should not be traded;
Importing countries should have sufficient existing national legislation and domestic trade controls;
Proceeds of the 60 tons of ivory should be used exclusively for elephant conservation, community conservation and development programs within or adjacent to the elephant range;
The Standing Committee deliberations come on the heels of another decision by seven African range states to oppose any trade in ivory. Earlier this month, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Mali, Cameroon, Tunisia and Ghana unanimously agreed that the conditions for the 60 ton stockpiled ivory must be met before the sale is allowed to proceed.
IFAW (the International Fund for Animal Welfare – http://www.ifaw.org ) is opposed to any trade in stockpiled ivory and lauded the Committee’s proactive discussions and recommendations. IFAW expressed concerns about a similar sale that CITES allowed in 1999, which resulted in a stronger demand for ivory across Asia and an increase in elephant poaching in parts of both Africa and Asia.
“IFAW commends the Standing Committee’s recommendations with respect to tightening up mechanisms to control domestic ivory markets and the determination of detrimental impact resulting from trade or decisions around trade,” said Peter Pueschel, IFAW’s Program Manager on Wildlife Trade. “It is imperative that stringent conditions for trade and verification of those conditions are met by both the export and import countries before any ivory trade proceeds.”
“Compounded by the lack of domestic legislative, regulatory and enforcement control in both Asian and African countries, any form of legal trade provides cover for the trafficking of illegal ivory from threatened populations of wild elephants,” added Pueschel.
IFAW recently released the report, “Elephants on the High Street,” which revealed that even in developed countries with relatively strong enforcement capabilities and resources, the illegal trade in ivory is flourishing. The report concluded that if a country like the U.K. cannot control its ivory markets, then less developed countries in Africa and Asia will have greater difficulty controlling their ivory markets.
Elephants are endangered due to loss of habitat and poaching for ivory. The Asian elephant population has dwindled to only 35,000 to 50,000. The African elephant has also had a distressing history, plummeting from 1.3 million in the early 1970's to about 400,000 today.
IFAW has and continues to partner with African and Asian governments in the provision of vital advice, equipment and training on anti-poaching and law enforcement efforts for elephants.
Founded in 1969, IFAW is an international animal welfare and conservation organization that works to protect wild and domestic animals and to broker solutions that benefit both animals and people. With offices in 15 countries around the world, IFAW works to protect whales, elephants, great apes, big cats, dogs and cats, seals and other animals. To learn how to help IFAW protect animals, please visit: http://www.ifaw.org
and
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
http://www.cites.org
In November 2002, CITES gave permission to South Africa, Namibia and Botswana to sell their 60 ton ivory stockpiles, but not before May 2004 and not until certain conditions had been met. The conditions include:
A system to monitor illegal killing of elephants.
Only registered government stocks originating from exporting countries should be sold.
Any ivory seized or of unknown origin should not be traded;
Importing countries should have sufficient existing national legislation and domestic trade controls;
Proceeds of the 60 tons of ivory should be used exclusively for elephant conservation, community conservation and development programs within or adjacent to the elephant range;
The Standing Committee deliberations come on the heels of another decision by seven African range states to oppose any trade in ivory. Earlier this month, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Mali, Cameroon, Tunisia and Ghana unanimously agreed that the conditions for the 60 ton stockpiled ivory must be met before the sale is allowed to proceed.
IFAW (the International Fund for Animal Welfare – http://www.ifaw.org ) is opposed to any trade in stockpiled ivory and lauded the Committee’s proactive discussions and recommendations. IFAW expressed concerns about a similar sale that CITES allowed in 1999, which resulted in a stronger demand for ivory across Asia and an increase in elephant poaching in parts of both Africa and Asia.
“IFAW commends the Standing Committee’s recommendations with respect to tightening up mechanisms to control domestic ivory markets and the determination of detrimental impact resulting from trade or decisions around trade,” said Peter Pueschel, IFAW’s Program Manager on Wildlife Trade. “It is imperative that stringent conditions for trade and verification of those conditions are met by both the export and import countries before any ivory trade proceeds.”
“Compounded by the lack of domestic legislative, regulatory and enforcement control in both Asian and African countries, any form of legal trade provides cover for the trafficking of illegal ivory from threatened populations of wild elephants,” added Pueschel.
IFAW recently released the report, “Elephants on the High Street,” which revealed that even in developed countries with relatively strong enforcement capabilities and resources, the illegal trade in ivory is flourishing. The report concluded that if a country like the U.K. cannot control its ivory markets, then less developed countries in Africa and Asia will have greater difficulty controlling their ivory markets.
Elephants are endangered due to loss of habitat and poaching for ivory. The Asian elephant population has dwindled to only 35,000 to 50,000. The African elephant has also had a distressing history, plummeting from 1.3 million in the early 1970's to about 400,000 today.
IFAW has and continues to partner with African and Asian governments in the provision of vital advice, equipment and training on anti-poaching and law enforcement efforts for elephants.
Founded in 1969, IFAW is an international animal welfare and conservation organization that works to protect wild and domestic animals and to broker solutions that benefit both animals and people. With offices in 15 countries around the world, IFAW works to protect whales, elephants, great apes, big cats, dogs and cats, seals and other animals. To learn how to help IFAW protect animals, please visit: http://www.ifaw.org
and
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
http://www.cites.org