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BEIJING - China tiger breeders called for the lifting of a ban on selling tiger parts, saying the trade in tiger medicines would help preserve the species.
China banned the sale of tiger bones and hides in 1993. Wang Ligang, general manager of the Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park, and Zhou Weisen, director of the Guilin Xiongsen Bear and Tiger Garden, said the ban had not stopped the decline in tiger numbers. "If legal channels exist and patients can legally get their wanted materials ... the motivations to purchase tiger bones from illegal sources can be greatly minimised," Wang said.
Wildlife groups fear officials will succumb to pressure from businessmen to revive the trade. Environmentalists say there are only 5000 to 7000 tigers in the wild.
- REUTERS
