Hong Kong chief executive vows to ‘kick start’ legal process for ban on elephant hunting trophies
CY Leung said government would also explore other measures such as further banning import and export of ivory and imposing heavier penalties on smugglers
Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying has pledged to kick start legislative procedures to ban the import and export of elephant hunting trophies as soon as possible and to explore enacting laws to completely ban ivory trade.
“Hong Kong is being seen by the international community as an illegal ivory trade center. This has damaged the city’s reputation,” he said yesterday, adding it is time to put a stop to it.
“(The government) will kick start legislative procedures as soon as possible to ban the import and export of elephant hunting trophies and actively explore other appropriate measures, such as enacting legislation to further ban the import and export of ivory and phase out the local ivory trade, and imposing heavier penalties on smuggling and illegal trading of endangered species.”
A global ban on ivory trade, covering Hong Kong as well, came into force in 1989. Permits were given to a handful of tusks, allowing them to be legally traded after the ban. But concern groups have said that these pre-1989 tusks were used as a front to launder ivory in recent years.
Yesterday’s announcement came just a month after lawmakers passed a non-binding motion urging the government to step up enforcement against smuggling of ivory tusks and other species.
Advocacy group WildAid chief executive Peter Knights said:“History has shown that legal ivory sales only serve to provide a cover for illegal trade, which fuels the rampant poaching we see across Africa. Hong Kong has always been the epicenter of that trade.”