System error, reboot required: review of online ivory trade in Japan
Yahoo Japan is the single biggest online platform for elephant ivory sales in Japan, according to a new TRAFFIC investigation, which recorded a staggering 4,414 ivory items plus 35 whole tusks for sale over a four-week period in June and July 2018. The latest findings were revealed in System Error, Reboot Required: Review of online ivory trade in Japan, which finds the overall number of elephant ivory items for sale on Yahoo Japan had fallen by 55%—from 9,788 to 4,414—compared to a similar survey in 2017. However the study found that the combined total value of ivory traded fell by only 16%, to JPY 37.8 million (USD 340,626) over the same time period, largely because of an increase in the sales of whole tusks, from 22 to 35. Under current Japanese legislation, only sales of whole ivory tusks have to be registered, but two of the tusks were sold without appropriate documentation.