Ivory trade is an old business
(Mirror Daily, United States) CITES or the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species has recently held a meeting on ivory trade. Authorities decided to close markets and prohibit animals being hunted. One of the officials’ main arguments was the low number of elephants in the wild.
The most recent meeting of CITES took place in Johannesburg, the largest city in South Africa. The authorities decided to keep the regulations of banning poaching and ivory trade. However, there were voices that claimed that market should allow such commerce.
CITES had to reach an agreement with states that had several problems. Some of them had ivory stockpiles and asked for permission to destroy them. However, conversationalists suggested that the already collected ivory should be used for other purposes rather than destroyed by burning it.
Other states asked for permission to close all markets involved in the process of ivory trade. The regulations imposed by CITES are not that harsh in this case either. Officials agreed that only illegal markets should be closed.
The United Nations also held a meeting on October 2. The members voted in favor of the closure of all markets, including legal domestic markets. They believe that allowing any type of ivory trade means sentencing animals to death.
Recent reports from specialists show that conservationists have strong reasons to be concerned about the faith of elephants. The large animals are widely hunted for their precious tusks. The population is declining because of poachers and low rhythm of reproduction.
Africa is home to both savanna and forest elephants. The latter type is smaller, so its sizes make it easy for hunters to chase them and put them down. Statistics show that the population of forest elephants displays a more drastic decline than that of savanna elephants.
This is why conservation specialists ask for the complete eradication of the practice of hunting elephants. They argue that more than twenty thousands of the large animals die every year by the hand of hunters.
China is one of the main ivory buyers. Trading the precious material doesn’t endanger only elephants, but other animals too, such as rhinos. Specialists hope that banning illegal commerce will help the animals.
On the other hand, it is also true that laws have never stopped poachers from carrying on with their activities. There are voices that claim that new regulation won’t prevent ivory trade.
Image courtesy of: Wikipedia