ZCZC
BFF-01
THAILAND-BLACKLIST-REMOVAL
Thailand removed from endangered species trade blacklist of countries
BANGKOK, Oct. 6, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – Thailand’s Wildlife and Plants
Protection Division on Friday announced that Thailand has been removed from
an international watch list of eight countries of primary concern in the
illegal ivory trade.
The decision was made at the 70th meeting of the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
standing committee that was held from October 1 to 5 in Russia.
Somkiat Sunthornpitakkul, director-general of the Department of National
Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation’s Endangered Species of Wild Fauna
and Flora Division, said that Thailand’s success was the result of the
governments effort in implementing strict measures in preventing and
suppressing African ivory smuggling into Thailand.
Thailand was one of eight nations that CITES marked as a source, transit or
destination country of illegally traded ivory.
Somkiat said the standing committee of the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) at the meeting in
Sochi, Russia during October 1-5 agreed to delete Thailand from CITES
National Ivory Action Plan (NIAP) after the panel was satisfied with
Thailands efforts to crack down on the illegal trade of ivory tusks.
In 2017, Thai customs officials seized 16,730 items of ivory products
weighing about 75 kg worth about 7.5 million baht.(1 U.S. dollar = 32.78 Thai
Baht).
BSS/XINHUA/GMR/0800 hrs