During the years 1989-1994, as part of Earthtrust's Endangered
Wildlife Initiative, the illicit trade in tiger parts was extensively
investigated to determine whether if was feasible to save tigers
in the wild. This work included undercover operations of many
Earthtrust field operatives in Indonesia, Taiwan, Mainland China,
and other countries using hidden cameras--work which at times
was quite dangerous. The result was a shocking overview of the
availability of tiger parts for folk-medicine usage and the conclusion
that at current rates of consumption tigers may be doomed in
the wild.
Earthtrust's undercover work played a large role in the efforts
of the Endangered Species Project and other groups in convincing
the United States to apply economic sanctions against Taiwan for
this trade: the first time sanctions had been applied by the US
for any wildlife issue, and the first trade sanctions against
Taiwan for any reason. Earthtrust's presence and research materials
also prevented the downlisting of the Siberian tiger at the 1991
CITES meeting in Japan. Unfortunately, the situation of the tiger
remains a bleak one.
Some of the results of Earthtrust's work in the area are extensively
documented in the 1993 white paper titled "The
Market for Tiger Products on Taiwan: A Survey" written
by the former head of Earthtrust Taiwan, Keith Highley.
