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Tanzania to urge pressure on ivory buying states

Saturday February 08 2014

East African countries head for a key London meeting on illegal wildlife trade with the threat of United Nations sanctions hanging over their heads, even as they try to forge a united front to end poaching that could wipe out huge populations of mammals in the region, mainly elephants and rhinos.

The conference, scheduled for February 13, is expected to be attended by government representatives from Africa, Asia, America and Europe, and will discuss the status of illegal wildlife trade and how to combat it.

Tanzania is reportedly at risk of UN sanctions as it is seen as a key conduit of ivory smuggling, as are Kenya, Malaysia and Vietnam, a Reuters report said last week.

According to the UK Minister for Africa, Mark Simmonds, the conference will focus on improving law enforcement to catch and punish those responsible; supporting the development of sustainable livelihoods in areas affected by wildlife crime; and reducing demand for wildlife products. The UK has announced new funding of £10 million ($16.3 million) for projects aimed at tackling poaching and the illegal wildlife trade.

READ: Wildlife slaughter: The world is facing a crisis today

Already Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have called on the international community to put more pressure on countries still allowing the illegal trade on their soil.

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The conference comes in the wake of a warning issued by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) last year to the so-called Gang of Eight to put their house in order and stop the illegal ivory trade or face unspecified sanctions. The Gang of Eight includes the source countries Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, transit countries Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, and destination countries Thailand and China.

READ: East Africa joins the infamous ‘Gang of Eight’

Already, Kenya has enacted a new anti-poaching law, with the first culprit charged under the Act being a Chinese man, Zhang Chunsheng, who was found in possession of ivory products worth Ksh58,000 ($682). He was sentenced on January 30 to a fine of Ksh1 million ($12,000) or in default a term of five years. However, the office of the Public Prosecution contested the penalty, saying it was too lenient.

READ: Chinese smuggler re-arrested at Kenya airport

The sentence was the first conviction of its kind under the tough new law designed to stop the wanton slaughter of wildlife. The harsh stance taken by Kenya was in contrast to the sentence meted out to a former US defence attache who was arrested at in Nairobi with 23 ivory ornaments, last year. He was fined a mere $350.

Recently, Tanzania warned that those found guilty of illegal wildlife trade will face tough penalties this year. The country has also called on the international community to put pressure on countries serving as markets for illegal wildlife products.

Uganda has also issued a warning to poachers, saying they will face the full wrath of the law this year.

Statistics on the African elephant are grim. The slaughter of the mammal in the three East African countries has soared in the past decade, as unscrupulous individuals work to meet the demands of the insatiable market in Asia.

Tanzania remains the leading source of ivory from the region and the elephant population, which currently stands at around 70,000, is destined for further decline.

The trend is the same in the neighbouring Uganda. Today, the elephant population stands at an estimated 5,000, down from the 20,000 that roamed the landlocked country in the 1960s.

According to Kenya Wildlife Service spokesman Paul Mbugua, Kenya lost 289 elephants in 2010, 289 in 2011 while in 2012, poachers managed to kill 384. By mid-July last year, the country had already lost 172 elephants to poachers.

A recent survey by National Geographic, conducted in different cities in China on individuals earning $32,000 and above per year, found that eight per cent already own ivory products, while 83 per cent intend to buy more. Some 68 per cent of the owners conceded that they were aware they were buying products made from illegal ivory.

China is one of the leading markets for illegal ivory and rhino horn.

Mr Simmonds, however, said he was happy with the efforts being made by African countries, citing groundbreaking conservation efforts in Namibia and experiments with the latest technologies in Kenya.

By Ray Naluyaga and Jeff Otieno

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