it made me sick to my stomach to read about britain’s shameful vote of support in allowing china to now become a legal buyer of ivory.

put simply, china has neither the capacity nor the will to ensure the legal provenance of ivory being imported into their country. most african nations have neither the resources nor the might to stop poachers or enforce the policing of the ivory trade. put those two factors together, and you’ve created a perfect storm scenario which could decimate an already threatened species.

even with the current restrictions, 20,000 elephants per year are murdered for ivory. there are only roughly about half a million african elephants left in existence, and even if left completely undisturbed, that population only increases at 6% a year.

china has long been implicated as a major player in the illegal ivory trade, because demand is so high.

animal rights africa calculates that, “In real terms this represents the death of an estimated 7,699 South African elephants (1.8 tusks per elephant and 3.68kg per tusk).”

that britain could endorse such a proposal is more than reckless – it’s completely unconscionable.

beirut – elephant gun

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