A policeman inspects trophies seized in Iringa Region in 2012.
PHOTO|File
Dar es Salaam. Asians, who are leading consumers
of ivory and other protected animal products globally, do not know that
the goods are a result of poaching, says a visiting lawmaker.
Speaking
to reporters in Dar es Salaam on Thursday, Hong Kong legislator
Elizabeth Quat said lack of awareness about the source of the products
by the consumers was a major impediment to the global war against
poaching.
“They buy ivory like a piece of art. They think the products come from animals that die of natural causes,” she said.
The
member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council who also visited Kenya was
in East Africa to see for herself the situation on the ground ahead of
her campaign to persuade Asians to stop buying the trophies as a means
of controlling poaching.
Also, she said she was going
to agitate for a stringent legislation in her country to ban domestic
ivory trade. Because the success of such legal control measures will
need the support of citizens, her campaign will start with awareness
creation.
“But for this to succeed, we have to work
together,” she said: “I urge my government and the Tanzanian government
to do all they can to counter the looming extinction of these beautiful
animals that are global heritage.”
Ms Quat’s visit
coincided with the news that some 262 kilogrammes of ivory worth
$413,000 (Sh826 million) were smuggled through Julius Nyerere
International Airport (JNIA) last month.
The ivory was seized at Zurich Airport in Switzerland on July 6 on its way from Dar es Salaam to China.
The
French news agency AFP reported on Tuesday that the contraband had been
chopped up and stashed in eight suitcases, along with around a kilo of
lion teeth and claws.
“How did the suitcases pass
through our airport?” asked anti-poaching ambassador Jacqueline Mengi,
who hosted Ms Quat: “Something is seriously wrong somewhere.”
No comments :
Post a Comment