© Esmond Martin and Daniel Stiles, March 2002 All rights reserved ISBN No. 9966-9683-2-6 Front cover photograph: These three antique ivory figurines of a reclining Buddha (about 50 cm long) with two praying monks were for sale in Bangkok for USD 34,000 in March 2001. Photo credit: Chryssee Martin Published by Save the Elephants, PO Box 54667, Nairobi, Kenya and 7 New Square, Lincoln’s Inn, London WC2A 3RA, United Kingdom. Printed by Majestic Printing Works Ltd., PO Box 42466, Nairobi, Kenya. Acknowledgements Esmond Martin and Daniel Stiles would like to thank Save the Elephants for their support of this project. They are also grateful to Damian Aspinall, Friends of Howletts and Port Lympne, The Phipps Foundation and one nonymous donor for their financial contributions without which the field-work in Asia would not have been possible. Seven referees — lain Douglas-Hamilton, Holly Dublin, Richard Lair, Charles McDougal, Tom Milliken, Chris Thouless and Hunter Weiler — read all or parts of the manuscript and made valuable corrections and contributions. Their time and effort working on the manuscript are very much appreciated. Thanks are also due to Gabby de Souza who produced the maps, and Andrew Kamiti for the excellent drawings. Chryssee Martin assisted with the field-work in Thailand and also with the report which was most helpful. Special gratitude is conveyed to Lucy Vigne for helping to prepare and compile the report and for all her help from the beginning of the project to the end. The South and South East Asian Ivory Markets Esmond Martin and Daniel Stiles Drawings by Andrew Kamiti Published by Save the Elephants PO Box 54667 c/o Ambrose Appelbe Nairobi 7 New Square, Lincoln’s Inn Kenya London WC2A 3RA 2002 ISBN 9966-9683-2-6 1 Contents List of Tables..................................................................................................................................... 3 Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................... 5 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 7 Methodology .................................................................................................................................... 9 Results of the countries surveyed in late 2000 and early 2001 ................................................ 11 Nepal .......................................................................................................................................... 11 Sri Lanka .................................................................................................................................... 20 Myanmar ................................................................................................................................... 29 Thailand ..................................................................................................................................... 36 Cambodia................................................................................................................................... 46 Laos............................................................................................................................................. 58 Vietnam ...................................................................................................................................... 62 Singapore ................................................................................................................................... 69 Status of the ivory trade in South and South East Asia ........................................................... 75 Trends in the ivory trade in South and South East Asia .......................................................... 78 Discussion ......................................................................................................................................... 81 Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 88 References ......................................................................................................................................... 89 Acknowledgements 2 List of tables Results of the countries surveyed in late 2000 and early 2001 Nepal Table 1 Cases of wildlife offences filed at the District Forest Office, Kathmandu for 1997/8-1999/ 2000. Table 2 Prices per kg for high quality raw ivory in the Kathmandu area for various years. Table 3 Prices per kg for poor quality (broken or damaged) raw ivory in the Kathmandu area for various years. Table 4 Country of origin for ivory items for retail sale in Kathmandu in early 2001. Table 5 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Kathmandu in 1998 and 2001. Table 6 Types of ivory items seen for retail sale in Kathmandu in early 2001. Table 7 Retail prices for ivory items in Kathmandu in February 2001. Sri Lanka Table 8 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Sri Lanka in November 2000. Table 9 Retail prices for ivory items in Sri Lanka in November 2000. Myanmar Table 10 Prices per kg in USD for raw ivory in Myanmar for various years. Table 11 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Myanmar in February 2001. Table 12 Retail prices for ivory items in Myanmar in February 2001. Thailand Table 13 Ivory seizures in Thailand, 1994-2000. Table 14 Retail prices for Thai-made ivory items in Bangkok in 1979. Table 15 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Thailand in February/March 2001. Table 16 Retail prices for Thai-made ivory items in Bangkok in February/March 2001. Table 17 Retail prices for Thai-made ivory items in Chiang Mai in March 2001. Table 18 Wholesale prices for Thai-made ivory items in Phayuha Kiri in March 2001. Cambodia Table 19 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Cambodia in March 2001. Table 20 Retail prices for ivory items in Phnom Penh in March 2001. Table 21 Types of ivory items seen for retail sale in Phnom Penh in March 2001. Table 22 Retail prices for ivory items in Siem Reap in March 2001. Table 23 Elephant products for retail sale in the main markets in Phnom Penh in March 2001. Laos Table 24 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Laos in January 2001. Table 25 Retail prices for ivory items in Laos in January 2001. Vietnam Table 26 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Vietnam in January 2001. Table 27 Retail prices for ivory items in Vietnam in January 2001. Table 28 Retail prices for ivory items in US dollars in Vietnam in 1991 compared with 2001. Singapore Table 29 Number of shops and ivory items seen for sale in Singapore in November 2000 and January 2001. Table 30 Retail prices for ivory items in Singapore in November 2000 and January 2001. Table 31 Retail prices for ivory items in Singapore in 1979. 3 Status of the ivory trade in South and South East Asia Table 32 Ivory trade indicators for South and South East Asia in 2000-2001. Table 33 Retail asking prices for ivory items in US dollars in South and South East Asia in 2000- 2001. Trends in the ivory trade in South and South East Asia Table 34 Past and present ivory trade indicators for South and South East Asia. Discussion Table 35 Wild elephant population estimates for South and South East Asia in the late 1980s and 2000. Table 36 Legal status of domestic sales of ivory items in the countries surveyed of South and South East Asia. Elephant tusk after tipping ISBN No.: 9966 – 9683 4 Executive Summary The purpose of this study is to provide base line data on the ivory trade in the main markets of South and South East Asia in order that national governments, CITES officials and NGOs may assess the effectiveness of policies, laws and enforcement activities relating to the internal and international trade in ivory now and in the future. The information obtained by the investigators may also be used to infer what is happening in respect to the illegal killings of elephants in Asia. The two investigators, Esmond Martin and Daniel Stiles, carried out field-work from November 2000 to late March 2001, sponsored by Save the Elephants, in the most important towns and cities in the eight main countries dealing in ivory in South and South East Asia. Historical and contemporary data were collected on the price of raw tusks, number of ivory workshops, number of ivory craftsmen, number of shops selling ivory items, number of ivory items seen in these shops, types of ivory objects for sale, and retail prices for ivory items. Information was also obtained on the number of wild and domesticated elephants, the international and domestic trade routes for tusks, and the nationalities of the buyers of ivory objects. Below are the key findings of our report: •Wild elephant population in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam from 1988 to 2000 have declined by over 80% in total from an estimated 6,250 to 1,510, largely due to the trade in ivory and other elephant products. Myanmar, with the largest wild elephant population left of the countries visited (estimated to be 4,820), has suffered a net loss of over a thousand elephants since 1990. • The main factors responsible for elephant poaching are the large economic return in selling tusks, the lack of paid jobs, poverty, and wide-spread corruption by the military and other government staff in poaching elephants and trading in their tusks. • The largest illegal movement of tusks from wild Asian elephants are those