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China crackdown on ivory trade deters smugglers, Hague report finds
- Vietnam remains key smuggling gateway between Africa and China but Wildlife Justice Commission says demand is dropping
- Strict Chinese law enforcement and long jail terms are deterring traffickers, according to the international foundation
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An 11-year jail sentence for a Vietnam-based wildlife trafficking “kingpin” and his associate has sent other illegal ivory traders packing, with many abandoning their operations into China, according to The Hague-based Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC).
Vietnam remains a key wildlife smuggling gateway for elephant ivory and rhino horn moving between Africa and China, but strict Chinese law enforcement is paying off, with a WJC report released on Wednesday showing a decline in the trade.
“[We] detected a drop in the demand for ivory among several Vietnamese networks, with some traffickers even warning our undercover operatives off ivory,” said the non-profit foundation’s executive director Olivia Swaak-Goldman.
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“Others have indicated they were burying ivory while waiting to see what would happen in China,” she said.
“The old days have changed in Vietnam and traffickers know there is a risk of law enforcement, although several traffickers still claim to have the corrupt connections to protect them.”
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