Doha CITES Roundup: Sharks, Ivory, Tuna, Polar Bears

"PARIS -- Delegates to a United Nations conference on endangered species voted down three of four proposals to protect sharks on Tuesday, handing another victory to Japan, China and countries opposed to the involvement of the international authorities in regulation of ocean fish.

The nations gathered in Doha, Qatar, for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, rejected proposals that would have required countries to strictly regulate -- but not ban -- trade in several species of scalloped hammerhead, oceanic whitetip and spiny dogfish sharks.

The hammerhead and whitetip proposals, introduced by the United States and the tiny Micronesian island of Palau, received majority backing. But the treaty behind the conference, abbreviated as Cites, requires that measures be approved by two-thirds of the delegates who are voting.

A proposal from the European Union and Palau to protect porbeagle sharks squeaked by with a vote of 86 to 42, with 8 abstentions -- a winning margin of a single vote. All of the votes were by secret ballot."

David Jolly reports for the New York Times July 23, 2010.

See Also:

"Elephant Ivory Sales Denied to Halt Worldwide Poaching Crisis" (ENS)

"Bluefin Tuna Ban Proposal Meets Rejection" (BBC News)

"Japan Leading Charge Against Bluefin Ban" (AP)

"No Trade Reprieve for Polar Bears" (AFP)

"Global Conference Rejects Bans on Trade in Bluefin Tuna, Polar Bear" (Washington Post)

"Conference Rejects Protection for Polar Bears" (Christian Science Monitor)