Yahoo – AFP,
19 May 2015
Singapore authorities seized the biggest illegal shipment of ivory and other exotic animal parts in more than a decade Tuesday, with the haul from Kenya worth an estimated Sg$8 million ($6 million).
 |
| Ivory tusks, rhinoceros horns and canine teeth from big cats seized by Singapore authorities are put on display in this photo by Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AFP Photo) |
Singapore authorities seized the biggest illegal shipment of ivory and other exotic animal parts in more than a decade Tuesday, with the haul from Kenya worth an estimated Sg$8 million ($6 million).
The animal
parts were discovered stashed among bags of tea leaves in two 20-foot
containers while transiting through the city-state to Vietnam, the Agri-Food
and Veterinary Authority (AVA) and Singapore Customs said in a joint statement.
Authorities
uncovered 1,783 pieces of raw ivory tusk hidden among the bags, the statement
said.
Four pieces
of rhino horn and 22 teeth believed to be from African big cats -- cheetahs and
leopards -- were also found in the containers, it said.
The haul
weighed 3.7 tonnes and is the largest seizure of illegal ivory in Singapore
since 2002 when six tonnes of ivory were intercepted, the statement said.
The
shipping of ivory has been banned since 1989 under the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) -- to
which Singapore, a major hub for seaborne trade, is a signatory.
In April
last year, local authorities intercepted a shipment of illegal ivory worth
Sg$2.0 million, labelled as coffee berries, transiting from Africa, according
to the statement.
A similar
cargo, also from Africa, worth Sg$2.5 million was uncovered in January 2013.
Ivory
ornaments are coveted in Asian countries like Vietnam, Thailand and China
despite fears that the trade is pushing wild elephants to extinction.
Rhino horn
is prized for its supposed medicinal properties.
No comments:
Post a Comment