Å®ÉúСÊÓƵ

Bears had a turbulent time in Japan last week. At the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species in Kyoto, a resolution to upgrade
the American black bear to Appendix 2, which strictly regulates trade, was
thrown out. Two days later the decision was overturned by a majority of
more than two to one.

This surprise turnaround was a relief for environmentalists. American
black bears are not endangered: there are some 670 000 of them. But there
is a thriving trade in bear gall bladders, which provide the ingredients
of one of the most coveted of oriental medicines. The gall bladders of the
five species of Asian bears which are at risk are frequently passed off
as those of legally killed American black bears. The World Wide Fund for
Nature hopes that the new CITES ruling will close this loophole.

‘We appreciate the outcome,’ said Hideomi Tokunaga, director of
the Japanese branch of TRAFFIC, which monitors the trade in animals and
animal parts. ‘It will make it more difficult for illegally hunted bear
gall bladder to get onto the market.’

Denmark proposed adding the American black bear to Appendix 2, but both
Canada and the US argued against it. At a later plenary session, where the
earlier decisions were reviewed, Denmark complained that the purpose of
its proposal had been misunderstood. The issue was put to a second vote.
This time the bears won by 46 to 20.

The issue was a sensitive one for Japan, which is one of the largest
markets for bear gall bladders. Embarrassingly, while Japan was abstaining
in the first vote, it was revealed that 95 bears had been killed at a ‘bear
farm’ on the northern island of Hokkaido.

Bears are regarded as a pest in Japan, and around 3000 are legally killed
each year. Last week in Tokyo’s fashionable shopping district of Ginza,
a bear’s gall bladder was on display at a traditional pharmacy for around
£870. ‘They are not so popular these days, because they’re so expensive,’
said the pharmacist. Even so, more than 1000 kilograms of bear gall bladders
were imported into Japan in the first half of 1990.