CHINA

 
Published: Wednesday 31 January 2001

At least 317 cases of killing and trafficking of protected wild animals have been reported in the Guangdong province of China during a recent five-day special inspection campaign. "At least 17,582 wild animals were confiscated during the campaign," said Zhou Bingnan, deputy secretary-general of the province. According to Zhou, the animals were caught and transported to Guangdong from the neighbouring Guangxi autonomous region, Hainan, Hunan, Jiangxi and Fujian provinces. "Guangdong is China's biggest trading centre for wildlife," Zhou said. Guangdong provincial government is planning to establish 10 natural protection zones across the province in the next 10 years. The government is also considering introducing regulations to punish those guilty of illegally killing, selling and purchasing state-protected wildlife.

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