Posted on 12 March 2010
Doha, Qatar – WWF
and TRAFFIC welcome a World Federation of
Chinese Medicine Societies (WFCMS) statement
urging its members not to use tiger bone
or any other parts from endangered wildlife.
The statement was made
at a symposium Friday in Beijing and notes
that some of the claimed medicinal benefits
of tiger bone have no basis. The use of
tiger bones was removed from the traditional
Chinese medicine (TCM) pharmacopeia in 1993,
when China first introduced a domestic ban
on tiger trade.
“Tiger conservation
has become a political issue in the world.
Therefore, it’s necessary for the traditional
Chinese medicine industry to support the
conservation of endangered species, including
tigers,” said Huang Jianyin, deputy secretary
of WFCMS.
Illegal trade in Asian
big cat products is a key issue at the Convention
on International Trade in Endangered Species
of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Conference
of Parties meeting at Doha, Qatar. China
is among the 175 countries that are signatories
to this international treaty governing wildlife
trade.
“CITES governments should
be encouraged by this statement and use
the opportunity they have at this meeting
to pass measures, that if properly enforced,
can help put an end to tiger trade,” said
Dr. Colman O’Criodain, Wildlife trade analyst,
WWF International.
The statement also calls
on all WFCMS’ members to promote tiger conservation
and encourages them to abide by all relevant
international and national regulations on
wildlife trade.
“The Societies’ public
declaration is a clear signal that the traditional
Chinese medicinal community is now backing
efforts to secure a future for wild tigers,”
said Professor Xu Hongfa, head of TRAFFIC’s
programme in China.
As an international
traditional Chinese academic organization,
the WFCMS stated that it had a duty to research
the conservation of endangered species,
including tigers.
“We will ask our members
not to use endangered wildlife in traditional
Chinese medicine, and reduce the misunderstanding
and bias of the international community,”
said the WFCMS’ Huang Jianyin. “The traditional
Chinese medicine industry should look for
substitutes and research on economical and
effective substitutes for tiger products,
which will improve the international image
and status of traditional Chinese medicine
and promote TCM in the world.”
The WFCMS is an international
academic organization based in Beijing,
with 195 member organizations spanning 57
nations where traditional Chinese medicine
is used. It aims to promote the development
of traditional Chinese medicine, which is
a primary form of healthcare delivery in
China, and widely regarded as an important
part of China’s rich cultural heritage.
WWF and TRAFFIC are
calling for a permanent ban on all trade
in tiger parts and products, and for a curtailment
of commercial captive breeding operations.
Wild tigers are especially
in the spotlight as 2010 marks the celebration
of the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese
lunar calendar. This year is seen as a unique
opportunity to galvanize international action
to save this iconic species.
