Chinese diplomats bought illegal ivory during official visits to Tanzania: agency

When Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Tanzania in 2013, members of his government and business delegation bought so much ivory that local prices doubled to $700 per kilogram, the UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) said in a report, citing ivory traders in the Dar es Salaam. They alleged that the buyers took advantage of a lack of security checks for diplomatic visitors to smuggle their purchases back to China on Xi’s plane. Similar sales were made on a previous trip by China’s former President Hu Jintao, the report said, and Chinese embassy staff were also described as “major buyers”. Tanzania had about 142,000 elephants when Kikwete took office in 2005, the EIA said, adding that by 2015 the population is likely to have plummeted to about 55,000 as a result of poaching.

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