Mizzima: Animal in Trade

[Mizzima News]

                             Animal in Trade

Moe Yu May
Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)

March 24, 2004

For decades, Burma most likely has been the resource to the live
wildlife trade port to China.

In accordance with a survey called,  “The Status on Live Wildlife Trade
Near the Port Areas in Yunnan”, 900 individual specimens were imported
from Burma to the Yunnan Province.  Three Chinese academics from the
Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden - Chinese Academy of Sciences
did the survey in 17 Hunnan ports in China.

Each year, about 2,500 tonnes of Burmese snakes were imported to Ruili,
according to 1996-1999 statistics of the survey. As well as, several
thousands of rare lizards and tortoises were smuggled across the
China-Burma border.

Saw Soe Soe, a Burmese journalist, who has lived in Ruili for 10 years,
said that he often saw live wildlife trade, such as snakes, lizards,
tortoises and monkeys.

“They (animal smugglers) bring the animals by packing them in big bags
or boxes and transport them through Mandalay – Larshow - Musae, the road
from Burma to China, then it reaches it’s final destination - Ruili.
Frequently, I have seen on Ruili Community television, police catching
these wildlife smugglers around the border area,” said Saw Soe Soe.

Consumption of 'wild food' in China has also increased.  People are
using wild animals for food, for traditional Chinese medicine and even
just keeping them as pets.  “There are many wild life restaurants in
Ruili.  Chinese love to drink snake immersed alcohol.  They cut the head
off the live snake and drink the blood, as they believe this is very
medicinal,” Saw Soe Soe added.

A former Chinese wildlife trader, who doesn’t want his name mentioned,
said that just last year he had been to a wild life restaurant in a
village called Tha Yat Taw, just outside of Mandalay on the way to
Lashow.  ‘They kept live animals at the restaurant and the customer
could point out what they wanted to eat.’  He used to trade tiger skin
and body parts from Burma to Taiwan and now he has been working on
endangered animal trade for the last 10 years.

Burmese authorities have raided four wildlife restaurants in Rangoon in
the last year, but some animal parts like tiger bone, skin, and elephant
tusk can still be found in Terchilake, a Thai-Burma border town.

Even though authorities enacted the Wildlife Protection Act in 1994, the
animal black markets around the Burma border areas are still trading.


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