Environmental Investigation Agency says that investigation found a little-known town of Shuidong in Guangdong province, near Hong Kong, is major hub for ivory smuggling by organized criminal gangs
An environmental watchdog group says its investigation has found that a little-known town in southern China is a major hub for ivory smuggling by organized criminal gangs.
The Washington, D. C.-based Environmental Investigation Agency said in a report Tuesday that it uncovered a network of ivory trafficking syndicates operating out of Shuidong in Guangdong province, near Hong Kong.
The group says its investigators worked undercover posing as buyers to win the trust of a smuggling group and tracked one of its shipments from Mozambique.
Syndicate members told the EIA theirs was just one of 10 to 20 ivory trafficking groups operating out of Shuidong, the group said.
They claimed that 80 percent of all poached ivory smuggled from Africa to China passes through the town – a startling figure that’s impossible to corroborate.
China has taken steps to curb the demand for ivory that wildlife groups say fuels the mass slaughter of tens of thousands of elephants in Africa every year. It started shutting down ivory carving factories in March and is planning to ban all domestic retail sales by the end of the year. Hong Kong, a major transshipment hub for illicit wildlife trading, is preparing to ban local ivory sales by 2021.
