(UTV|COLOMBO) – China released new rules last Monday to allow trade of rhino horns and tiger parts for certain medical and cultural purposes, watering down its 25-year-old ban on the same. No reason was given for lifting the ban which was implemented in 1993 amid a global push to protect the fast-disappearing endangered species.
The new rules restrict the sale, use, import and export of such products to “special circumstances”, such as medical and scientific research, educational use and for “cultural exchanges”.
China’s ban on tiger bones, rhino horns
Beijing banned the trade of tiger bones and rhino horns, both prized in traditional Chinese medicine, 25 years ago as part of global efforts to halt declining animal stocks. But illegal poaching has continued, driven by demand in an increasingly affluent country.
Commercial tiger farms in China are legal, and although using tiger bones in medicine was banned, tiger parts from these farms often ended up being made into tonics or other medicines, animal rights groups said.
