Background
1. A worldwide ban on commercial trading in African
elephant ivory was introduced under the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (CITES) on 18 January. The UK entered a six month
Reservation to allow Hong Kong to dispose of its stocks of
legally-acquired ivory and to allow the carvers and workers
to find alternative employment. The Reservation was withdrawn with effect from midnight on 17 July following delivery of a Note from the British Embassy Berne to the Swiss as depositary power of CITES.
2.
Hong Kong Legislation to give effect to the worldwide
ban came into effect when our Reservation was withdrawn.
loophole in the legislation which would have allowed
tourists to export ivory from Hong Kong under the personal possessions clause of CITES was closed when the Governor amended the legislation.
A
3. It has been alleged that the Reservation led to the deaths of around 50 elephants. Whilst we have seen no evidence of a direct link between the continued poaching in East Africa and Hong Kong it seems probable that the
poachers continued poaching for a short time after 18 January hoping to smuggle ivory into Hong Kong, before they realised that Hong Kong was only trading in existing stocks.
By 29 March Dr Leakey, head of the Wildlife Service was able to tell the Kenya Times that poaching was no longer worthwhile because the lack of markets had forced the price
of raw ivory so low.
*. Of the 358 tonnes of ivory which could be exported from Hong Kong during the Reservation only 8.59 tonnes were
exported because of the collapse of the world market. The remainder will stay in Hong Kong for local sale. A
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