Japan’s elephant ivory market is open – the legal framework for the control of the trade in ivory is designed and built to regulate and facilitate commercial ivory trade and support ivory traders.
Since the world banned the international trade of ivory in 1989, most nations have done their part to protect elephants by closing their domestic ivory markets. When will Japan join the fight?
On January 19, 2023, EIA and 17 other Japanese and international NGOs sent a letter to Tokyo’s Governor Koike, applauding her and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government for action taken on the trade in elephant ivory thus far. The organizations also encouraged Tokyo to continue to heed the recommendations from the designated Advisory Council, including by enacting an ordinance […]
EIA and nine other organizations appealed to Japan’s Prime Minister Kishida to commit to the closure of Japan’s domestic ivory market to send a signal to the global community that Japan is ready to join other countries and take a significant step to protect Africa’s elephants from being killed for their ivory. This appeal comes ahead […]
EIA encourages CoP19 to reject the proposal from Namibia and Botswana to transfer Namibia’s population of southern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum simum) from Appendix I to Appendix II with an annotation limiting commercial trade to live animals for in-situ conservation only and hunting trophies. CITES Parties voted against the adoption of a very similar proposal […]
EIA and 26 international non-government environmental and conservation organizations sent a letter May 10, 2022, following up on previous letters and appeals to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG), to urge TMG to follow through on its commitment and take action to address concerns about Tokyo’s ivory trade by implementing the recommendations of the Advisory Council. The […]