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BLOG: Tokyo’s Ivory Paradox: Promoting Trade While Promising Reform
 1007 1024 Japan Tiger Elephant Organization

By Masayuki Sakamoto, Executive Director of the Japan Tiger and Elephant Fund and Amy Zets Croke, Senior Manager at the Environmental Investigation Agency In Japan, Tokyo’s elephant ivory trade policy approach is in the middle of a paradox. On one hand, Governor Yuriko Koike’s administration has promised reform of domestic trade controls in ivory to prevent illegal export. On the other hand, Tokyo Metropolitan Government has been providing subsidies to increase demand for ivory and work towards pushing for international trade to be reopened. Where does Tokyo leadership really stand? VIDEO: Tokyo’s Ivory Paradox: Promoting Trade While Promising Reform In Africa, elephants continue to be poached for their tusks to supply the trade in their ivory – today, Japan is…

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REPORT: Submission of the briefing on TMG’s subsidies to ivory industry to the Governor
 484 465 Japan Tiger Elephant Organization

On June 11, 2024, JTEF and Environmental Investigation Agency based in Washington D.C. submitted a briefing: “Tokyo Metropolitan Government Subsidies to Ivory Industry Stakeholders” to Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike (See the summary the briefing on EIA website). It revealed that Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s Bureau of Industrial and Labor Affairs has paid subsidies annually [yearly average of around 4 million JPY (33,000 USD)] to Tokyo’s leading ivory industry association with the goals of igniting the resumption of international ivory trade, increasing the domestic demand for ivory crafts and products, and facilitating the trade in ivory. Project Examples The ivory association described in the application form dated July 5th, 2021: “Currently, Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Botswana whose president was replaced and…

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PRESS RELEASE: International community relies more on Tokyo than on Japanese government on regulating over open domestic ivory market
 813 817 Japan Tiger Elephant Organization

Japan Tiger and Elephant Fund and 16 NGOs in the world sent a letter to the Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike in January 2023, requesting to enact an ordinance to be adopted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly to close the ivory market in Tokyo with only very narrow exemptions if necessary. The Advisory Council on Regulation of Ivory Trade designated under the initiative of the Tokyo Governor on January 28, 2020 was closed on March 29, 2022, issuing the final recommendations after some delay due to COVID-19 pandemic. The most potential and noteworthy recommendation is: “[…] The Tokyo Metropolitan Government should consider legal or other effective means to ensure that the ivory trade does not contribute to elephant poaching and illegal…

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