‘Can we stop this?’: senior Hong Kong environment official halts BBC interview about ivory trade
Christine Loh demurs when pressed by journalist to publicise list of city’s legal dealers
Hong Kong’s deputy environment minister told journalists to turn off their cameras after she was asked why a list of the city’s legal ivory traders could not be made public.
“I don’t know, actually, I am not quite sure how to answer this question,” undersecretary for environment Christine Loh Kung-wai told the BBC during an interview published today.
“But it’s your list, isn’t it?” the journalist asked.
“Can we stop this? Can we agree to stop this?” said Loh as she extended her hands gesturing the crew to stop filming. The video footage later showed the senior official standing up.
But campaigners against the ivory trade have been pressing the government to publicise a list of legal ivory traders in the city, arguing it would improve transparency in the secretive trade and help them verify whether rules were being enforced.
The spokesman said a public list “would involve disclosure of personal information and those related to the business of the licensees, which is considered inappropriate.”
Loh told the Post she did not want to comment on the BBC report, but said it did not offer the government an opportunity to explain the matter.
“I felt sorry so I was being candid [in the interview]...I was indeed not familiar with that particular detail of that policy,” said the undersecretary, who added she immediately arranged for another department official to speak with the BBC the same day she was interviewed.