Hong Kong seizes largest ivory haul in 30 years
HONG KONG: Authorities in Hong Kong this week made their largest haul of contraband ivory in more than 30 years, amid surging illegal wildlife seizures fuelled by lax regulations and buoyant demand from mainland China.
The former British colonyis one of the top global transit hubs for endangered species and their products, such as shark fin, pangolin skin and rosewood furniture.
Customs officials said they had seized 7200kg of ivory tusks, valued at about HK$72 million (NZ$12.7m), at a cargo warehouse beside the city’s harbour.
The ivory was discovered in a container from Malaysia declared to hold frozen fish, beneath which officers found the tusks.
‘‘The 1000 boxes were halfempty when we found them with frozen fish put around the ivory,’’ said customs official Raymond Chan.
Conservation group WildAid estimated the tusks had been taken from about 720 elephants.
Hong Kong’s agriculture, fisheries and conservation department said it was investigating the shipment’s final destination, probably a nearby country.
A special administrative region of China, Hong Kong has lagged other places, including the mainland, in adopting tighter rules against trading of ivory and other endangered species.
Regulatory loopholes allow traders to use a stockpile of legal ivory as cover to smuggle illegal ivory to unsuspecting buyers, say groups such as the World Wildlife Fund and WildAid.
China, Singapore and the United States have all banned the ivory trade, with the mainland closing down all operations by the end of this year. – Reuters