BANGKOK, 19 August 2014 – The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has instructed the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to lay down a concrete plan against ivory trade in line with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Spokesperson of the NCPO Yongyuth Maiyalap stated that the council today called a meeting with relevant agencies to assess Thailand’s operations to combat the illegal trade of ivory. The Natural Resources and Environment Ministry was tasked by the council to spearhead the development of an action plan in accordance with the agreement made at the 65th Meeting of the CITES Standing Committee in July this year.
Mr Yongyuth revealed that member states at the CITES meeting suggested Thailand to revise its national ivory action plan (NIAP) by the end of September this year in order to enforce laws that would more effectively regulate the domestic ivory trade, possession and issuance of trade licenses as well as clamp down on the illegal ivory market.
Moreover, CITES obligated Thailand to submit progress reports on its implementation of the NIAP on January 15 and March 31, 2015. Delegates from member countries will pay a visit to the Kingdom to evaluate the developments in person.
