Banner image: To protect the world from zoonotic diseases, CITES needs to be amended, refocused or superseded by other international protocols, says its former head, John Scanlon. (Photo: Still from Eye of the Pangolin) By Don Pinnock, Daily Maverick, 27 May 2020 It’s time to rethink the role of CITES, says its …
Shooting Captive Animals for Sport (and Trade)
As we await the United Kingdom’s planned legislation resulting from the “Consultation on controls on the import and export of hunting trophies,” the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting (CBTH) has released a study “Shooting Captive Animals for Sport – South Africa, the United Kingdom & the growth of a global …
Zoonotic Diseases of Mass Destruction (Part II) – Who is regulating who?
Banner image courtesy of Animals Asia In the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the legal trade and illegal wildlife trafficking trade has come under increasing scrutiny (for good reason). A 2019 study concluded that one in every five species is affected by trade of some sort, but that the wildlife trade will expand …
Living with wild animals (Part Two): Eat them like there’s no tomorrow
Banner Image – “Late last year, 32 wild animals, including lions, giraffes, white and black rhinos, lions and cheetahs, were listed under the Animal Improvement Act, effectively rendering them farm animals subject to manipulation and consumption“ Article by Don Pinnock, “Living with wild animals (Part Two): Eat them like there’s …
Open letter to World Health Organisation
6th April 2020 Dear Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus [Director General, World Health Organisation] and Dr Zhang Qi [Co-ordinator of Traditional and Complementary Medicine Unit (TCM), World Health Organisation], COVID-19: Health risks and wildlife[1] markets – the need for a permanent global ban on wildlife markets and a highly precautionary approach to …
Living with wild animals, Part One: Cash cows or fellow beings?
As we approach World Health Day on Tuesday, 7 April 2020 – please join the call to end wildlife markets/wildlife trade across the globe to protect human health, including re-emphasising the inherent human health risks of tuberculosis (TB) transmission from the lion bone trade. World-wide, TB has been infecting and killing …