UN Wildlife Pact Allows Ivory Sale to Japan

A United Nations wildlife pact has allowed the export of 60 tonnes of ivory from three southern African countries to Japan amid concerns about the growth of the illegal ivory trade and elephant poaching in parts of Africa.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) decided on Saturday to permit the one-off sale of ivory from Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, saying it would monitor closely the impact on poaching and population levels.

CITES, whose 171 member nations begin a two-week meeting in The Hague on Sunday, is credited with stemming the slaughter of the African elephant by banning the global ivory trade in 1989.

But scientists and environmentalists say the killing of elephants for their tusks, mainly in central Africa, has now reached levels not seen since 1989, as Asian-run organised crime gangs push the illegal ivory trade to unprecedented heights.

Last year alone, experts estimate as many as 23,000 African elephants were illegally killed.

Some environmentalists say that a CITES decision to allow a one-off sale of 50 tonnes of ivory from Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe in 1997 increased black market demand for ivory and put elephants in grave danger.

	Nations meet to protect wildlife	BBC News	Mon Jun 4	0
	US 'major illegal ivory importer'	BBC News	Wed Jun 6	0