Topic: The Dangers of Wildlife Products on eBay

[Derek]

Did you know that thousands of animal and wildlife products made from
endangered species are bought and sold over the Internet every day?

IFAW investigations have uncovered some shocking wildlife offers online:
wild leather and fur handbags, shoes and clothes from endangered reptiles,
rhinoceros horn trophies, an alarming number of items made from ivory and
much more.

As the largest Internet marketplace for ivory sales, eBay is directly and
indirectly assisting the illegal trade in wildlife as well as the poachers
who create it.


Demand that eBay end illegal wildlife offers from its auction sites
immediately
http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=17846

Increasingly, illegal wildlife products are distributed online as the means
by which the illicit trade in wildlife is conducted. This enables illegal
trade at tremendous speeds to go completely unchecked: a trade so great that
it is now estimated to be second only to illegal trafficking in drugs and
weapons.

IFAW recently conducted an in-depth survey of ivory products for sale on
eBay. During a one week investigation of eight eBay sites, a whopping 2,275
ivory items were found. More than 94% of these ivory items did not comply
with eBay's own stated standards and the remaining 6% were most likely
illegal.

There is no single, well-defined, consistent global eBay policy governing
the listing of ivory on its various national web sites. Each national eBay
site has its own rules, almost all of which are vague. Illegal items taken
down in one country can easily be reposted or accessed on another eBay
country website.
http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=213011&msource=DR070505001&tr=y&auid=2691671

Fueling the poaching of elephants in Africa and Asia

The illegal wildlife trade is a lucrative business for poachers that
encourages them to kill more animals. More than 20,000 elephants are killed
annually today to supply these illegal ivory markets. Although much of this
ivory is still sold through traditional markets, the killing won't stop
until the vast online outlets for ivory are shut down.

As the largest seller of illegal ivory on the Internet, eBay needs to ban
sales of ivory globally on all its sites and strictly enforce such a ban.
The trade in ivory is cruel and unsustainable. eBay must take action to
ensure it plays no part in this ongoing tragedy for elephants.

eBay has expressed its commitment to a global policy on the ivory trade and
a willingness to work closely with IFAW on drafting such a policy and its
enforcement. But words are not enough.

Please take a moment to send a letter to eBay corporate headquarters
http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=17846&Aid=8595&msource=DR070505001&tr=y&auid=2691672

urging e-Bay to enforce a complete global ban on ivory sales.

Thank you for speaking out,

Robbie Marsland
Director, IFAW United Kingdom

P.S. eBay must accept responsibility for the impact that trade in wild
animal products on its sites is having on the world's wildlife. Please tell
eBay in your own words why allowing the sale of illegal wildlife products is
wrong. http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=17846