Estimates based on under-cover investigations suggest that 90 percent of ivory sold in China is illegally obtained, smuggled into the country with the aid of corrupt customs officials, and sold on the black market. There Is no doubt that China is one of the world's largest consumers of ivory. China's increasing affluence along with poverty in Africa have combined with criminal activity to produce an unprecedented slaughter of elephants for their ivory. Recently, poaching of elephants has ovolved herding them from helicopters, shooting them wth automatic wepons, and using power saws to extract their tusks. The poachers and their methods are brutal to man and beast alike. Rangers risk and lose their lives attempting to defend the elephants. The slaughter is senseless. it will lead to the eradication of this magnificent species from the planet if immediate action is not taken to stop it. The world must call upon China to stop the trade in illegal ivory now. China now has the opportunity to stand tall on the world stage as the country that took decisive action to save the elephant, or to remain silent and allow these unspeakable massacres and the blood ivory trade to continue, at the cost of the regard in which China is held by the rest of the world.
