Call for halt on bushmeat trade

Date: 08/11/01

By Martin Banks

ANIMAL charities have demanded urgent action to stamp out the illegal trade in so-called bushmeat from Africa. A 1,500-name petition has been presented to the European Parliament calling on EU leaders to help stop the threat of extinction of the remaining ape and gorilla population in central Africa.

Organisers say there is a thriving market for bushmeat in Europe, particularly in Belgium and France, which both have close links with Africa. Nathan Argent, of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, said: "We know bushmeat commands high prices in top restaurants in Brussels and Paris. This trade threatens many endangered species with extinction within 20 years, including man's closest relative, the chimpanzee. "Urgent action is needed if these magnificent apes and chimpanzees and other animals are to be saved." The petition, organised by IFAW and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, and signed by people throughout Europe, was presented to the Parliament yesterday (8 November).

Celebrated environmentalist, Dr Richard Leakey, former head of Kenya's wildlife service, handed over a set of demands calling on the EU to act to stop the trade. He said: "More than one million tonnes of wild animals every year are killed for their meat in the tropical forests of Africa. Roads made by logging and mining companies have created easier access for hunters to the forest and its wildlife. "The message we tried to get across, however, is that, as well as being unethical, the bushmeat trade is now no longer a sustainable commercial business."

Animal charities have demanded urgent action to stamp out the illegal trade in so-called bushmeat from Africa.