Stop the Brutal Killing of African Elephants

  • by: WorldWomenWork.org
  • recipient: The Ambassadors to the U.S.from China, Gabon, Tanzania, Congo & Thailand

The senseless demand for ivory must be stopped as the brutal and illegal killing of elephants is a massacre of unsustainable proportions, caused by the massive demand for ivory products in countries like China and Thailand. The presence of  chinese businesses and entrepreneurs in Africa in particular are making the market connections to smuggle the ivory to the newly wealthy in China. The criminal operations involved are supported by corruption and overwhelmed authorities in elephant range states like Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 

To gun down an elephant and hack off the tusks leaving a faceless mass which was moments ago a magnificent sentient creature for all to revere is totally unacceptable and all for greed. Elephants mourn their dead, are capable of suicide, have amazing memories, loving playful families and to die to become a trinket is an act that we as human beings can not condone. No one needs an ivory ornament – you cannot eat it or use it as a medicine to save a life, and there are so many alternatives that do not cost the lives of the last great beasts on the planet.

Ambassador Zhang Yesui

Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United States

3505, International Place, N.W., Washington D.C. 20008, U.S.A.

His Excellency, Sir Carlos Victor Boungou,

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Embassy of the Gabonese Republic
1630 Connecticut Avenue, NW, 7th FloorWashington, D.C. 20009

Ambassador Mwanaidi S. MaajarEmbassy of the United Republic of Tanzania1232 22nd St. NW, Washington D.C 20037
   
Faida M. Mitifu, Ambassador
The Embassy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo1726 M Street, N.W. Suite 601, Washington, D.C. 20036

Ambassador, Royal Thai Embassy
1024 Wisconsin Ave., N.W. Washington D.C. 20007

Dear Sirs,

We the undersigned implore you to help stop the brutal killing of African elephants. The senseless demand for ivory must be stopped as the brutal and illegal killing of elephants is a massacre of unsustainable proportions, caused by the massive demand for ivory products in countries like China and Thailand. The presence of  Chinese businesses and entrepreneurs in Africa in particular are making the market connections to smuggle the ivory to the newly wealthy in China. The criminal operations involved are supported by corruption in elephant range states like Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo and local authorities there are too overwhelmed to stop it.

To gun down an elephant and hack off the tusks leaving a faceless mass which was moments ago a magnificent sentient creature for all to revere is totally unacceptable, and all for greed. Elephants mourn their dead, are capable of suicide, have amazing memories, loving playful families and to die to become a trinket is an act that we as human beings can not condone.No one needs an ivory ornament – you cannot eat it or save a life with it as a medicine and there are so many alternatives that do not cost the lives of the last great beasts on the planet.

Governments of China, Thailand, Gabon and Democratic Republic of Congo are the top priorities for action to provide the solution to this crisis.  They need to step up to undertake a variety of actions ranging from stopping trafficking and sale of illegal ivory and protecting elephants by increasing enforcement and closing down the illegal markets that are driving poaching.  Countries like Tanzania play a key role as a major transit point for illegal ivory shipments from Africa to Asia too.In the United States we believe that your governments have a responsibility to the world on the political level to show that you can protect elephants.
 
We ask you to to fulfill your obligations under international and domestic laws and work together to support each other in combating the crisis stretching from the kill zones in Africa to the high class ivory stores in Beijing.

We thank you for taking the time to read our letter.

Sincerely,
Singer RankinWorldWomenWork.org

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