In recent times customs
officials in Hong Kong announced one of the largest seizures of smuggled ivory
made in the city, in addition to it being the fifth seizure since October. Conservationists describe the trade of ivory as
an “all- out crisis for elephant populations in Africa.” The shipment of ivory
contained a staggering 1,148 tusks, worth around 2.25 million dollars. Increasing
prosperity in Asia has caused the demand for ivory and other wildlife products
to skyrocket recently, putting immense pressure on multiple plant and animal
species. Unfortunately, poaching has pushed dome species to the brink of
extinction, despite warnings. Solutions to this pervasive issue include
enforcement and penalties, but since these remain weak other precautions must
be taken. Another solution includes incorporating China’s recently proposed “legal
ivory trade.” The legal trade includes sustainably obtaining ivory when
elephants die naturally. The legal system that China has begun to implement
includes a unique photo identification tracking system that that keeps up with
each piece of ivory. Regrettably though, much of the illegal ivory comes from regions
of political and social unrest in western Africa, not China. In Africa tens of
thousands of elephants have been killed for their tusks, and it is believed
that money obtained from the poached ivory is promoting conflicts across the
continent. Ultimately, the huge demand for ivory from China, Hong Kong,
Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines serves as a barrier to the legal ivory
trade since there is a demand for massive amounts of ivory from Africa to bring
in revenue. Personally, I believe that the smuggling of ivory is an economic,
political, and social issue. Disappointingly, since the demand for ivory is so
high, more of it must be obtained at a quicker rate and waiting for elephants
and rhinoceroses to die naturally would not be efficient enough. The politically
stable regions of Africa need to take legal actions to protect the endangered rhinoceroses
which play a major role in their culture. With both Asia and Africa on board,
the precious lives of these species will be preserved, but a successful solution
will require strict legal actions, economic compromise (rather than a complete
ban), as well as a little less selfishness and greed and more consideration for
the species whose existence is in jeopardy.
Smuggling for ivory is definitely a political, social, and economical issue. These animals are at risk, and for what sake? While these countries are claiming smuggled ivory from these trunks, conflicts arise. These animals are becoming even further extinct, and once they are gone, what are we supposed to do? Making money can be achieved through different methods, not through ivory tusks only. These countries need to not only consider the ivory tusks, but also the rugged and damaged environment they are leaving behind. Elephant numbers are dimming down and all these countries can worry about are the profits and benefits. I think we need to raise awareness for this issue. Simply warning the countries has no effect, especially when money is involved. If this issue becomes big enough and campaigns are strung across the world for this problem, maybe these countries will reconsider and stop harming animals and the environment.
ReplyDeleteThe main problem is getting Africa to cooperate. They're in such a mess right now unfortunately their corrupt and impoverished governments can't handle such an immense issue.
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