Bear chipping
program roll out strengthens bear farm monitoring
Hanoi Forest
Protection Department in coordination with World Animal Protection has
completed the re-microchipping of more than 200 remaining captive bears on
farms in Hanoi, one of the hotspots in Vietnam in terms of both the captive
bear population and concentration of farms. The latest electronic chips now
allow safer and more efficient monitoring of the bears without the need for
anesthesia.
The recent
re-microchipping program in Hanoi is part of a new strategy developed by a
coalition of NGOs (World Animal Protection, Education for Nature - Vietnam and
Four Paws International) in partnership with the government to expedite the end
of bear farming in Vietnam.
In 2005, the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and World Animal
Protection (formally World Society for the Protection of Animals) initiated a
program to register and insert microchips in more than 4,300 captive bears on
hundreds of farms throughout the country. This was the first step in an
integrated and strategic campaign to phase out bear farming in Vietnam. The
registration and microchipping process was mainly aimed at preventing new
illegally sourced bears (without microchips) from entering farms and ensuring
improved monitoring of farms for illegal activities.
Thanks to the strong
commitment from the government, hard work by provincial Forest Protection
Departments in enforcing the law, as well as NGOs and members of the public
over the last 12 years, the number of captive bears has decreased dramatically
to a little over 1,200 today (according to the Ministry of Agriculture and
Rural Development in 2015).
“We have achieved
significant progress since 2005, when the government initiated efforts to phase
out bear bile farming in Vietnam,” says Mrs. Bui Thi Ha, Director of Policy and
Legislative Campaigns at ENV. “Not only has the number of bears on farms been
reduced by about 70%, but bear bile use has also dropped by more than 61%.”
Mrs. Ha also stresses that there have been corresponding improvements in the
law and that application of the law by enforcement agencies is far more
effective today than it was twelve years ago.
Mrs. Ha cites the
successful closure of bear bile farms in Quang Ninh in 2015 as an example, and
notes that collaboration between ENV and the Quang Ninh provincial government
successfully put a stop to “bear bile tourism” in the province.
“Bear bile farming
is coming to an end,” says Mrs. Ha. “We are continuing to work hard to expedite
an end to bear bile farming, working hand in hand with government, local law
enforcement and members of the public to see this through to completion.”
Asked about the
recent re-commitment by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to
bring an end to bear bile farming in Vietnam, Mrs. Ha says, “We are pleased to
see MARD recommit publicly to this important objective, and we would like to
extend our sincere thanks to all international organizations that have and
continue to contribute to our efforts to end bear farming in Vietnam.”
Mrs. Ha notes,
“Everyone has an important role to play that best suits their skills and
expertise, whether it is providing a secure home and environment for bears
transferred or confiscated from farms, or contributing in some other way to
help us bring this cruel and illegal business to an end.”
Mr. Karan of World
Animal Protection, which initiated efforts in Vietnam to end bear bile farming
back in 2004, emphasized the importance of capitalizing on the momentum
resulting from the successful rechipping
operation in Hanoi.
“It’s critical that authorities effectively monitor farms post microchipping of
bears to ensure bear farmers do not engage in any form of exploitation of their
captive bears, including trading them illegally.”
“At the same time,”
says Mr. Karan, “we plan to expand the re-microchipping program to other key
provinces where there are concentrations of bears and bear bile farms.”
Mr. Karan, echoing
the sentiments of Mrs. Ha says, “Our efforts since 2005 have achieved
substantial progress and success thus far, but this fight is not over until
each and every bear from these bile farms is safely transferred to a rescue
center, and the bile business is finished forever in Vietnam.”
ENV welcomes the
recent addition of Four Paws International to Vietnam.
Four Paws is in the
process of constructing a state of the art sanctuary for bears in Ninh Binh
province which will greatly assist in providing more space for bears that are
confiscated or transferred from farms.
A recent short film
highlighting progress in ending bear farming in Vietnam can be viewed at the
following link: http://bit.ly/2uycYZ2
For more information, please contact
Communications Team
Education for Nature – Vietnam
communication@envietnam.org
Tel/Fax: +84 4 6281 5424/ +84 4 6281 5423
Website: www.envietnam.org
Peter Dickinson
Independent International Zoo Consultant        |
No comments:
Post a Comment