Singapore Airlines bans lion bones in cargo
Report says 800 lion skeletons were exported from South Africa for medicine, jewellery in 2017
Singapore Airlines said Friday it has stopped accepting lion bones for cargo after the carrier was singled out in a report for transporting the animal parts from South Africa.
Campaigners have long called for a ban on the controversial trade in big cat bones, which are sought after for medicine and jewellery in Southeast Asia.
Singapore Airlines was the sole carrier importing lion bones from South Africa to Southeast Asia last year, according to a report released in July by the EMS Foundation and animal rights group Ban Animal Trading.
At least 800 lion skeletons had been exported with the blessing of the South African government in 2017, the report said, making it the world’s largest exporter of lion bones.
The airline said it had stopped accepting lion bones as cargo, but did not say when the policy had come into effect.
“Singapore Airlines does not accept the carriage of lion bones as cargo following a review which took into account increasing concerns around the world,” the company said in an email.
