TNAG-2132-FCO40-3047-Hong-Kong-and-the-ivory-trade-1990 — Page 42

Mr Brenton

Mr Slater

PS/Mr Waldegrave

IVORY: BREACH OF CITES

нис

R....

From: J Evans

Date:

CC:

9 July 1990

PS

PS/Mr Maude

Mr Paul, HKD

Mr Whitehead, News Dept

Mr Lidington

Mr Fraser

1990

A

B

1.

Two Sunday newspapers, the 'Independent on Sunday' and

the 'Mail on Sunday', yesterday published reports that Hong

Kong is preparing to breach CITES regulations on trade in

ivory when the Reservation is withdrawn on 18 July. The

reports claim that Hong Kong will use a loophole in the Convention relating to exemptions for personal possessions to allow tourists to take ivory out of Hong Kong.

2. At the Ramsar Convention meeting in Montreux last week

I was approached by David Melville of WWF Hong Kong who told

me that he had received a letter from the Secretary for

Economic Services of Hong Kong explaining that the exemption

for personal effects would apply 'irrespective of the

nationality, race or residency status of the person

concerned'. Melville told me that his view was that this

was clearly in breach of CITES Article VII. I promised to

follow this up when he sent me a copy of the letter.

251