Greater protection for pangolins: Born Free reaction
GREATER PROTECTION FOR PANGOLINS: BORN FREE REACTION
Born Free welcomes China’s latest move to grant pangolins greater protection, by removing them from its traditional medicines list.
Dr Mark Jones, Born Free’s Head of Policy, said: “Pangolin populations have been devastated by the demand in parts of Asia for their scales for traditional medicinal use, and for their meat which is considered a delicacy. All eight species are threatened with extinction, and three of the four Asian species are critically endangered. With as many as 200,000 pangolins being killed each year for the trade, bold action is urgently needed to secure a future for these fascinating and unusual mammals from extinction.
“The removal of pangolin scales from the approved list of products for traditional medicine in China is a really important step, and comes hot on the heels of a ban on the consumption of wild animals as food, and the raising of legal protection for pangolins in China to the highest level. We congratulate the Chinese authorities for taking these steps, urge them to ensure that they follow through with robust enforcement to protect remaining pangolins and public education programmes to discourage illegal use, and encourage other countries in which there is a demand for pangolin products to do the same,” Dr Jones added.
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