In Global First, Philippines to Destroy Its Ivory Stock
No other ivory-consuming nation has taken such a dramatic step.
The act comes in the wake of the country's being identified by National Geographic magazine as having a longtime ivory-trafficking problem.
"The destruction of the items would hopefully bring the Philippines' message across the globe that the country is serious and will not tolerate illegal wildlife trade, and denounces the continuous killing of elephants for illicit ivory trade," says Mundita Lim, director of the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
PAWB, the country's lead wildlife agency, will destroy all the ivory in its possession, except for 106 pieces to be repatriated to Kenya and a few pieces to be retained for training, enforcement, and education purposes.
Five tons is less than half of
