Word: longing
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...herds have been hardest hit are Tanzania and Kenya. They lead the call for a worldwide ban, and are joined by conservation groups, including the World Wildlife Fund and Wildlife Conservation International. They argue that it will take decades for elephant herds to begin to recover, and that as long as there is any legal trade, the lure of profits will entice poachers and smugglers to beat the system...
...world's ivory, in contrast to about one-third for the U.S. and Europe together. Last year Japanese carvers turned an estimated 64 tons of tusks into as many as a million hanko, or personalized name seals. Much of this ivory was bought from Hong Kong, which has long been the world's ivory marketplace. Between 1979 and 1987, Hong Kong imported 3,900 tons. That represents the death of more than 400,000 elephants...
Hong Kong has long been the crossroads of the ivory trade. Government figures show 675 tons of ivory stockpiled in scores of factories and about 300 shops. Ten families or syndicates account for three-quarters of the ivory Hong Kong imports each year. One of those is headed by Poon Tat Hing, whose ivory network has extended from Africa to Dubai and Singapore, and into Japan. His shop, Tat Hing Ivory, displays 6-ft.-tall ivory figures that sell for $15,000 and up. When asked where the ivory comes from, salesmen simply say "Africa." The Lai family...
...certain. "I foresee chaos," says a spokesman for Botswana. In the final days leading up to the meeting, lobbying efforts by both sides reached a frenzied level. The vote in Lausanne will not be unanimous, and any prohibition of ivory trading will be at best a patchwork. As long as southern African nations such as Zimbabwe and Botswana refuse to accept the ban, ivory will be available for sale...
...both places have expressed deep concern at the catastrophic losses to Africa's herds and have vowed to place the preservation of the elephant ahead of the interests of the trade. In Lausanne that commitment will be tested. Japan has made admirable strides to restrict the trade, but its long-term stand remains a wild card. "We, of course, pay close attention to other countries' opinions," said a spokesman for the Japanese government. "We have not fixed our position." The Japanese have every right to feel that many Western nations have shifted their stance rather abruptly. Until its recent trade...