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- Dubai 04:31 05:49 12:21 15:48 18:47 20:05
Malaysia's customs officials display the newly-seized elephant tusks in Port Klang outside Kuala Lumpur September 5, 2011. Two containers containing 695 elephant tusks worth 3 million ringgit (US $1 million) were seized by Malaysia's customs department on Friday, as reported by Malaysia's daily The Star quoting the customs assistant director-general. (REUTERS)
Malaysian authorities have confiscated nearly 700 African elephant tusks worth about 3 million ringgit ($1 million) destined for China, the third seizure of illegal ivory since July, officials and wildlife activists said Tuesday.
Customs assistant director-general Zainul Abidin Taib said in a statement that the ivory, weighing 2,000 kilograms (4,400 pounds), was packed in sacks and hidden in two containers of recycled plastic from Tanzania that were seized Friday.
Wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC lauded the seizure, saying it underscored Malaysia's role as a transshipment hub for illegal ivory trade fueled by rising demand in China.
On Aug. 21, Malaysian customs authorities at a port in northern Penang state found 664 pieces of African ivory hidden in a container of plastic materials that had arrived from the United Arab Emirates. On July 8, 405 African elephant tusks declared as plywood were seized at a port in southern Johor state.
No arrests have been made so far but Zainul said investigations were ongoing.
"This marked the first major ivory seizures by Malaysia. It is a big step forward. We hope Malaysia will keep this momentum up but it's not over until they get the people behind it," said TRAFFIC's deputy regional director for Southeast Asia, Chris Shepherd.
He urged regional authorities to boost cooperation and step up enforcement as traffickers would likely try to change routes to keep their black market business alive.
Last week, Hong Kong authorities seized African ivory worth $1.6 million hidden in a container that arrived by sea from Malaysia.
International trade in ivory was banned in 1989 in response to an alarming slaughter that sent the number of elephants in Africa plummeting. But a surge of demand in Asia, especially China where ivory is valued for use in traditional medicine, has driven illegal elephant poaching in recent years.
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