Chinese Officials Continue Illegal Ivory Trade During Trip to Africa

Despite promises to stamp out the illegal ivory trade in China, officials accompanying President Xi Jinping during a trip to Tanzania went on an ivory buying spree, according to a report released Thursday, perpetuating the ongoing elephant poaching running rampant throughout Africa.

China is the world's largest importer of smuggled tusks and Tanzania is the largest source of poached ivory, according to the London-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) behind the report.

While the non-profit group and other conservationists claim that the demand for ivory in China is soaring and fueling the illegal trade, Chinese delegates insist they are opposed to poaching.

"The report is false and we are displeased with it," Hong Lei, spokesman for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told The Associated Press (AP).

"I don't think there's hard evidence, and I have not seen such cases," added Meng Xianlin, director general of the Endangered Species Import and Export Management Office of China, who said he has never heard of Chinese delegations' involvement in the ivory trade. "Allegations without evidence are not believable, and I don't think it is appropriate for (EIA) to come up with this mess." (Scroll to read on...)

But, despite refutes, the EIA insists that Jinping's entourage of government officials and businesspeople used the president's 2013 visit to Tanzania as a chance to acquire illegal ivory. Weeks beforehand, Chinese buyers began purchasing huge quantities of ivory, which supposedly was sent back to China in diplomatic bags. The trip was so successful that local prices reportedly doubled to about $318 a pound.

"This business involves rich people and politicians who have formed a very sophisticated network," Tanzania politician Khamis Kagasheki said in a statement.

The Last Animals

Tanzania's elephant population has suffered from poaching more so than any other African country, according to the report, with 10,000 killed in 2013 alone - an average of nearly 30 animals a day. Even in the country's famous Selous Reserve elephant populations have plunged 67 percent in just four years.

The African elephant is the largest animal walking the Earth, and can be found roaming throughout 37 countries in Africa, National Geographic says. And when there were once millions of them, there are now only an estimated 300,000 worldwide. They are easily recognized by their large ears, long trunks and impressive tusks, which they use to dig for food and water and strip bark from trees.

Unfortunately for these iconic mammals, their tusks are prized by people in China who see them as a status symbol. The carving industry profits greatly by turning ivory into ornate jewelry, trinkets and religious sculptures for wealthy collectors, The New York Times reports. (Scroll to read on...)