Elephant Poaching on the Rise: Africa Mulls Loosening Ivory Trade Ban

Some African nations are seeking to relax an international ban on the ivory trade, but wildlife conservations fear that will lead to a renewed massacre of African elephants. Meanwhile, poachers in Africa are killing more elephants than they have in almost 20 years.

The surge in elephant poaching coincides with a revival of talk on legalizing the ivory trade. When the signatory states to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meet in The Hague in June, "the ivory trade will be one of the most controversial issues" on the agenda, predicts Jochen Flasbarth, the German chief negotiator and Director of the Department of Conservation at Germany's Ministry of the Environment (BMU).