(CN) FW: Pressure grows in China to drop ban on tiger trade

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http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/pressure-grows-in-china-to-drop-ban-on-tiger\

-trade/2007/06/19/1182019116087.html

 

by Mary-Anne Toy, Beijing

June 20, 2007

 

In an abrupt turnaround, a senior Chinese wildlife official has declared

that the 14-year domestic ban on trading tiger bone and other parts may be

lifted.

 

The switch is due to growing pressure from private tiger-farm owners and

" society " for tiger parts that are highly valued in Chinese traditional

medicine and wine.

 

" The ban is in place, " Wang Wei, deputy director of wildlife at the State

Forestry Administration, said. " But it is open for review . The ban won't be

there forever, given the strong voices from tiger farmers, experts and

society.

 

" It will be a waste if the resources of dead tigers are not used in

traditional medicine. "

 

Mr Wang said allowing bones of captive tigers that died naturally to be

traded might help conservation of wild tigers.

 

The Government was conducting a review and it was decided that lifting the

ban was beneficial for conservation, he said. Policies to allow authorised

trading in tiger bone and other parts, including microchip monitoring of

animals, would be formulated.

 

Tiger bones are used to treat conditions including rheumatism, skin diseases

and convulsions. Tiger-farm owners argue that allowing legal farming of

captive tigers would help protect the 50 or so Chinese tigers left in the

wild, but China could face international condemnation if it lifts the ban.

 

An estimated 5000 to 7000 tigers remain in the wild in the world. The

Siberian tiger is critically endangered, with an estimated 400 left in the

wild, but China's private zoos are having a baby boom, with 84 Siberian cubs

born in the past three months in just one private zoo in northern China.

 

All up, there are more than 5000 tigers in captivity in China, with 1000

born every year in zoos and tiger farms.

 

Mr Wang's comments, reported in Tuesday's China Daily, contradict assurances

given by other officials earlier this year that China was committed to the

ban. Last week, Chinese delegate Wang Weisheng told a UN wildlife conference

that Beijing had no immediate plans to lift its ban, but would reconsider if

it could be demonstrated to have a beneficial effect on conservation of wild

tigers.

 

At that meeting, John Sellar, a senior enforcement officer for the

171-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species,

criticised China's intensive breeding program as having limited potential

for conservation.

 

Conservationists fear any easing of the ban would lead to a surge in demand

and encourage increased poaching of wild tigers.

 

The reappearance of tiger bone wine last year, coupled with several Chinese

tiger parks lobbying the Government to ease the ban, has sparked increasing

concern from animal rights groups.