Sri Lanka destroyed its biggest ever illegal ivory haul in the first public crushing of poached tusks in South Asia.
The country said it was sending a strong message by destroying the haul: more than 350 tusks weighing about 1.5 tonnes were displayed in the capital before being fed into a crusher and sent to an industrial furnace.
26 January 2016: Sri Lanka destroyed its biggest ever illegal ivory haul in the first public crushing of poached tusks in South Asia. The country said it was sending a strong message by destroying the haul: more than 350 tusks weighing about 1.5 tonnes were displayed in the capital before being fed into a crusher and sent to an industrial furnace.
The ivory originated mostly in Tanzania and northern Mozambique. John Scanlon, Secretary-General, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), praised Sri Lanka for its actions, underscoring the importance of the country’s efforts as a transit State to intercept illicitly traded wildlife and wildlife products, thus protecting wildlife in Africa and beyond. [CITES Press Release] [National Geographic News]