China's Ivory Market: The Elephant in the Room

Abstract

Levels of illegal ivory hunting reached a peak in 2012, and in 2013 elephants were massacred at an unprecedented rate ([ 1 ][1]). One of the largest buyers hiding behind the massacre is China, and the Chinese market is the most important factor leading to the explosion of the illegal ivory trade. In 2007, despite the great pressure of world opinion, the Chinese ivory industry persuaded the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) to grant it permission to purchase certain quotas of ivory, justifying the need by claiming to support “the traditional heritage of ivory sculpture” ([ 2 ][2]). However, instead of slowing the decrease in the elephant population, the CITES decision, with its goal to keep “equilibrium between protection and utilization,” has become a permanent umbrella for the illegal ivory trade, and ivory gained illegally can be laundered easily on the so-called “legal market” by smuggling it into China ([ 3 ][3]). In China, many or most legal enterprises dealing in ivory processing and sales are involved in illegal ivory trade, and there is a bulky ivory consumer market behind this black market chaos. Due to the influence of traditional ideology and the widespread love of flaunting wealth, the abnormal consumption of ivory products in China remains obstinately common. Recently, the Chinese government confiscated and destroyed 6 tons of ivory in an attempt to address this issue (“By the numbers,” News of the Week, 10 January, p. [124][4]). This inspiring step in the right direction sends a clear message that the government has zero tolerance for illegal ivory trade. To move forward, the relevant Chinese government departments should strictly track the legality of ivory resources and ivory products, amend as quickly as possible the supervision loopholes that exist in the illegal ivory trade under the shield of “legal ivory,” and control the abnormal consumption of ivory and ivory products. These actions may be crucial to rescuing African elephants. 1. [↵][5]1. D. Cressey , Nature 503, 452 (2013). [OpenUrl][6][CrossRef][7][PubMed][8][Web of Science][9] 2. [↵][10]“The destination of ivories: The black markets in China boosted the illegal ivory trades internationally,” Southern Weekly (9 December 2011); [www.infzm.com/content/65944][11] [in Chinese]. 3. [↵][12]“China became the premier destination for the ivory smuggling: The ivories were easily laundered when they entered China,” A Xinhua Net (13 November 2013); [in Chinese]. [1]: #ref-1 [2]: #ref-2 [3]: #ref-3 [4]: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6167/122.3.full [5]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1 in text [6]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DNature%26rft.volume%253D503%26rft.spage%253D452%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1038%252F503452a%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F24284712%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [7]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1038/503452a&link_type=DOI [8]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=24284712&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fsci%2F343%2F6171%2F611.2.atom [9]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=000327464200011&link_type=ISI [10]: #xref-ref-2-1 View reference 2 in text [11]: http://www.infzm.com/content/65944 [12]: #xref-ref-3-1 View reference 3 in text