Nations meet over endangered species; Japan's ivory trade on agenda

A man-made material with working properties equal or superior to center tusk ivory could be engineered on demand, and may already exist.

I'm sure a Japanese Beauracrat will whip out his Ivory hanko, stamp the paper knowing full well there are enough loopholes to ensure that for scientific purposes only and satisfying the greed of his masters the trade will continue and for appearance only Japan is cracking down.

Japan already has enough stock to last until the next poachers bring some in! THe country should be ashamed into action, but they wont be.....it's the world against Japan again! "Our" culture is being threatened and we have to fight back and ignore all the complaining!

Rather sickening to listen to at times!

CrazyJoe - A man-made material with working properties equal or superior to center tusk ivory could be engineered on demand, and may already exist.

Yes, there are actually many polymers and ceramics in use today that are equal to or better than ivory. Think about dentistry to start with. There is no reason for any country to continue trading in ivory. It is only a few backwater countries holding onto some stupid traditional belief that are continuing the trade of ivory. The largest trader of ivory is also supposed to be a technologically advanced country. It’s a shame they use their technology to develop better ways of producing ivory goods instead of developing alternatives.

The ban ban on ivory trading was instigated some 30 odd years ago. However, it’s only in the last year that japan has started to investigate the origins of the tons of ivory for sale in Japan and put restrictions on the sales although, I can still go to my local name stamp shop and have an ivory stamp made for around $100. The is because Japan has made the testing of ivory a voluntary thing and only the scrupulous traders wanting to get top dollar will have their stocks tested. The rest will still be sold under the radar with dubious origins. It’s very disappointing that every time there is discussion on animal conservation Japan always gets a mention.

I've learned something, I didn't know it was still legal in Japan.

Come on Japan even China banned it...

"Business as usual is no longer an option ... The rate of wildlife extinction is accelerating," said CITES Secretary-General Ivonne Higuero.

((笑))！No, nothing will change because people don't care. Mabey they'll sign a petition or take some literature (sorry tree's) at the 'mall' as the continue to consume as much crap as thier salaries allow.

Japan's heavily bought into the US "free trade" thing where self-regulation is supposed exist. We see here what that really means.

A recent investigation revealed that nearly 200 retailers in Japan are willing to sell ivory hanko knowing the sought-after name seals are destined for export which is illegal.

Since 1970 more than 262,000 elephants have been killed to supply ivory to Japan, mostly for hanko. 

I think if people have adopted to Rolexes, and pocket calculators over soroban, they can just sign things with pens.

Yubaru

... it's the world against Japan again! "Our" culture is being threatened

I appreciate you are not writing that in your own voice.

When and from where did ivory hanko become Japanese culture? I don't remember Elephants roaming the Chubu Sangaku.

It's saddening that the best the ivory spokesman can come up with is

"The many people who work in the ivory business will no longer be able to continue with their work in that business - and that is a serious problem"

No thought of the animals at all. 

What the shops need to do is be made to have large posters of elephants shot down by AK47s and their tusks chainsawed off in the window?

"the world’s largest legal domestic ivory market"

https://eia-global.org/reports/20181007-japan-ivory-hanko-report

https://eia-global.org/reports/20190807-persistent-problem-japan-domestic-ivory-trade

*Go Tsurumi, chairman of the Japan Federation of Ivory Arts and Crafts Association,* insisted some people who live alongside elephants in Africa would be "very disappointed" if domestic demand for ivory is cut off in places like Japan.

Is he a lobbyst for poachers? Internationally, isn't the whale a whale enough of a problem for these guys,?that now, they are also getting cited in elephant problems? ivory belongs to elephants, most Africans benefit from tourism than the ivory trade.

Aw, we all know Japan is the victim here.

Stamps can be made from other materials, there is no excuse save greed and ignorance.