Elephant Funeral Procession Highlights Danger of Ivory Trade: 83% Public Back 20-year Ban
20 May 2007
(London) A life-sized elephant coffin was the centrepiece of a sombre funeral procession that passed Westminster today, organised by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) to warn of the dangers of ivory trade ahead of a major international conservation meeting.
The UN Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) meets
in The Hague on June 3-15. Conservationists fear that almost two decades of
elephant protection will be reversed if plans by three Southern African nations
to sell 60 tons of stockpiled ivory are voted through.
Many African countries, including elephant range states in East and Central Africa, remain firmly opposed to reopening ivory trade, as any legalization drives demand and provides incentives for increased poaching. Among the range states opposed to any relaxation in the ban on ivory trade, Kenya and Mali, supported by Ghana and Togo, are calling on CITES to adopt a new 20 year ivory moratorium.
A new Ipsos-MORI poll released today reveals that more than eight out of ten people (83%) in the UK support a 20 year total ban on the ivory trade from all elephants in Africa and Asia. IFAW is calling on the Biodiversity Minister, Barry Gardiner MP, to listen to the majority of the British public and 19 African range states and to vote in favour of the moratorium at the CITES meeting.
Robbie Marsland, UK Director of IFAW, says: “More than 20,000 elephants are killed each year for their ivory tusks. The UK government must vote at CITES to protect elephants from this deadly trade by backing a new 20-year ivory ban. Failure to do so is tantamount to signing a death sentence for thousands more of these endangered species.”
The illegal trade in ivory has escalated in recent years; between August 2005 and August 2006, over 23 metric tonnes of poached ivory were seized by Customs and Enforcement officials around the world. The majority of this trade originates in Africa and is smuggled to Asia, where illicit ivory markets flourish. These seizures are suspected to represent a mere 10% to 15% percent of the actual illegal trade.
More than 55,000 members of the public have signed action cards calling for the UK government to vote against ivory trade, which IFAW is delivering to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). For media-related inquiries, contact:
IFAW Press office
phone: 0207 587 6700
Many African countries, including elephant range states in East and Central Africa, remain firmly opposed to reopening ivory trade, as any legalization drives demand and provides incentives for increased poaching. Among the range states opposed to any relaxation in the ban on ivory trade, Kenya and Mali, supported by Ghana and Togo, are calling on CITES to adopt a new 20 year ivory moratorium.
A new Ipsos-MORI poll released today reveals that more than eight out of ten people (83%) in the UK support a 20 year total ban on the ivory trade from all elephants in Africa and Asia. IFAW is calling on the Biodiversity Minister, Barry Gardiner MP, to listen to the majority of the British public and 19 African range states and to vote in favour of the moratorium at the CITES meeting.
Robbie Marsland, UK Director of IFAW, says: “More than 20,000 elephants are killed each year for their ivory tusks. The UK government must vote at CITES to protect elephants from this deadly trade by backing a new 20-year ivory ban. Failure to do so is tantamount to signing a death sentence for thousands more of these endangered species.”
The illegal trade in ivory has escalated in recent years; between August 2005 and August 2006, over 23 metric tonnes of poached ivory were seized by Customs and Enforcement officials around the world. The majority of this trade originates in Africa and is smuggled to Asia, where illicit ivory markets flourish. These seizures are suspected to represent a mere 10% to 15% percent of the actual illegal trade.
More than 55,000 members of the public have signed action cards calling for the UK government to vote against ivory trade, which IFAW is delivering to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). For media-related inquiries, contact:
IFAW Press office
phone: 0207 587 6700
