Tens of thousands of people in 140 cities around the world will take to the streets to send a powerful united message to the delegates, urging them to vote for the strongest measures of protection for elephants and rhinos.
The great elephant census revealed that 30% of Africa’s elephants have been wiped out between 2007 and 2014. That’s 144,000 elephants killed in seven years. At the current rate of decline of eight per cent a year, African elephants are on the path to extinction.
The London march will end at Whitehall. A letter will be delivered to 10 Downing St, calling on the government to fulfill its 2010 and 2015 manifesto pledge for a total ban on ivory trade in the UK.
Every year around 30,000 elephants and 1,100 rhinos are brutally killed by poachers. Their tusks and horns are hacked off and trafficked around the world, mainly to countries in Asia where demand is highest but also to Western countries. They are brutally butchered by heavily armed criminal gangs using an arsenal of weapons, including AK-47s, helicopter gunships, snares, and poison.
London march co-organiser Denise Dresner of Action for Elephants said: “We have very little time left to save these magnificent, iconic species. How can we sit by and allow such a catastrophic loss to happen on our watch? These animals desperately need our help. We urge everyone to give a few hours of their time on Sept 24th to join the global call to save them – there won’t be a second chance.”
Please visit www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org to find a march taking place in a city near you and all related information.
