Ivory crackdown

摘要

The noose is tightening on a key hub used to smuggle ivory from Africa to Asia. In three months, Malaysian authorities have seized over 1700 African elephant tusks -a first for the nation. Chris Shepherd of wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC says that in 20 years of working in anti-animal trafficking he has never known Malaysia to seize any tusks, despite other authorities making seizures on ships to - or from - Malaysia. In the last two weeks alone, over 1000 tusks were seized on their way there. Because of this apparently lax approach to control, Malaysia is thought to be a trafficking hub. "Smugglers look for the path of least resistance," says Shepherd.