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CITES, round 12

  • 14/12/2002

the 12th Conference of Parties (cop-12) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (cites), held in Chile between November 3 and November 15, breathed a fresh lease of air into wildlife management. It brought sustainable use and economic incentives back on the agenda.

Three African states were allowed to sell some ivory stock: Botswana, 20 tonnes; Namibia, 10 tonnes; South Africa, 30 tonnes. A terrible compromise: these countries had demanded they be allowed to sell existing stocks via annual quotas. Zimbabwe, symbol of community-based conservation, lost out to the dirty politics of the industrialised world, ever interested in any facade for trade hegemony (see: Pig-headed species). The us openly admitted it had canvassed against the economic logic Zimbabwe stood for.

cites actually tried to change its character. It sought to align itself with agencies that promote sustainable use of natural resources, like the Food and Agricultural Organization. It widened its ambit; for the first time marine species were proposed for inclusion on its appendices. Among other things, this has placed upon the cites process the pressure to stop delaying exactly what it means by

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