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Survey Backs Calls to End Illegal Wildlife Markets

Luke Hunt

   PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA - Illegal wildlife markets could be consigned to
   the dustbins of history within five years amid a public outcry over
   their capacity to spread disease, and a widespread belief that the
   trade at least contributed to the coronavirus pandemic.

   It's a sentiment that has been backed by a survey by the World Wildlife
   Fund and strategic consultants GlobeScan, covering five key markets in
   East Asia, where consumption from illegal wildlife markets remains
   prevalent.

   Matt Hunt, chief executive officer at Save the Bears in Cambodia, said
   massive change would occur in how people live as a result of the
   pandemic and said such surveys should back government efforts to shut
   down illegal wildlife markets.

   "All it takes is the political will," he said, adding that such markets
   could be consigned to history within three to five years if politicians
   were prepared to act.

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