Thailand/Bangkok. Bangkok International Airport, 12/2003 A shipment of
Pangolins that were intercepted at Bangkok's
international airport as part of a crackdown on trafficking in the wild
animals, which are considered a delicacy in China and other countries and
prized for their use in traditional medicine. A customs official said the
latest haul was packed in boxes marked as containing turtles. A customs
official said 'We found them in 102 boxes originating from Kuala Lumpur and
transiting here on their way to Vientiane,' he said. Trafficking in the
animals is expected to increase as the cold season approaches in China.
Pangolin blood is consumed there in the belief it helps keep the body warm
and enhances sexual performance. Wildlife poaching is rampant in much of
Southeast Asia, driven in large measure by the insatiable Chinese appetite
for exotic dishes and faith in traditional medicines that use ingredients
from the animals. More than a thousand pangolins were seized by Thai
authorities last year and they were also presumed to be bound for China.
Scotland Yard, London, England 9/2003 Inside Scotland Yard's animal
protection unit, an officer displays a tiger's head seized during a raid in
London.
