Tiger skin trade continues unabated in Tibet.

30/03/2007 00:00:00 October 2006. Environmentalists are calling on the Indian and Chinese governments to take urgent action against the criminals running the illegal skin trade. A recent undercover investigation by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA)
and the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI) found that the trade in leopard and tiger skins in China and Tibet continues unabated, operating without any interference from the Chinese government, and all the time edging India’s tigers towards extinction.

Investigators found that even though the open use of tiger and leopard skins for costume decoration seemed to be declining, traders appeared to be servicing an increased demand for whole tiger and leopard skins for use as prestigious gifts and home decoration. This demand appeared to be driven by Chinese tourists, local Chinese businessmen and government officials.

WPSI Director Belinda Wright said; ‘Despite many promises from both the governments, no effective action has been taken to crack down on the hardcore criminals behind the skin trade. The governments involved are in a state of lethargy, and, in the case of China, even appear to be condoning the trade.’

STOP PRESS
At the recent CITES meeting in Geneva October 4th-6th, the CITES committee virtually stuck their head in the sand concerning the plight of the tigers, mostly due to lack of co-operation between India and China. Only on the last day, did the tiger receive a limited reprieve with a last minute agreement to dispatch an UN-led technical mission to China to verify the effectiveness of their enforcement measures. Investigators found the trade in tiger and leopard skins was open and easily accessible in the markets of China. In just 10 days, the investigators met eleven traders who offered whole tiger and leopard skins for sale. The traders were obviously aware of the illegality of their operations, but were not worried about the arrest or disruption by local authorities; one trader stated that enforcement had decreased over the last 2 years.

Head of EIA’s Tiger Campaign, Debbie Banks, said; ‘This illegal trade is run by very organised criminal networks who have far too much invested to let a few isolated raids and random seizures deter them. If the governments are to stand a chance of combating this illegal trade, they will need to recognise this and direct their enforcement teams to take more proactive, intelligence-led action.’

The 54th meeting of the CITES Standing Committee on the illegal trade in tiger parts will be discussing the issue. One possible outcome will be that parties such as China and India would have to show that sufficient action has been taken by April 2007, or risk the suspension of trade in CITES listed species.

Click here to see more about EIA's work. EIA and WPSI call on all parties to CITES to recognise the urgency of the matter. They also urge the international community to provide financial support and enforcement expertise for the creation of specialised, multi-agency enforcement units capable of taking on the organised criminal networks behind this illicit trade.

Wright continued: ‘Enforcement is not controversial or the subject of scientific debate. It is quite simply essential. The clock is ticking for the tiger and there is only so much more talking we can do, the time for action is now, before the last tiger vanishes’.