To: Ivonne Higuero, Secretary-General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and all Parties to CITES; Andry Rajoelina, President of the Republic of Madagascar; HalimahYacob, President of the Republic of Singapore, Uhuru Kenyatta, President of the Republic of Kenya and Dinesh Gunawardena, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka:
Re: Open Letter From Civil Society Organizations And Scientists Working on Madagascar and Biodiversity Issues Urging CITES to Protect Malagasy Rosewood and Ebony Trees Before They are All Gone.
Dear Madam and Sirs:
We, the undersigned civil society organizations and scientists with decades of experience working to protect forests and biodiversity are writing to implore CITES Parties, the Governments of Madagascar, Singapore, Kenya and Sri Lanka to:
- prevent the approximately 40,000 Malagasy rosewood (Dalbergia spp. Fabaceae) and ebony (Diospyros spp. Ebenaceae) logs—hereafter called, “precious wood” – seized in Singapore, Kenya and Sri Lanka, from being returned to the smugglers who illegally exported them from Madagascar in 2014;
- fund and provide the required expertise to implement all of the elements of the 2013 Madagascar Rosewood and Ebony Action Plan, including identifying species, auditing and securing all of the stockpiles of rosewood and ebony, conducting non-detriment findings and improving forest governance to protect the remaining rosewood and ebony forests;
- extend and expand the mandate of the Intersessional Advisory Group to aid in the full implementation of all of the elements of the 2013 Action Plan, and to formulate disposal plans for the seized logs and stockpiles that will not be detrimental to the survival of the Malagasy species of rosewood and ebony;
- take immediate steps to stop the ongoing illegal logging of precious wood in Madagascar, which is often unreported due to the economic conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent enforcement void; and
- reject the Malagasy government’s plan to begin to use the “officially controlled” or any other stockpiles of rosewood and ebony logs on a domestic level until the 2013 Action Plan is fully implemented and any such action can be conducted in a manner that is not detrimental to the survival of the Malagasy species of rosewood and ebony.
Madagascar is one of our planet’s richest biodiversity hotspots. But while the world stands by idly, deforestation of rosewood, ebony and other unique tree species in this critical island habitat home to animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth, continues unabated.
At the 19th Conference of the Parties (CoP 19), 14–25 November, 2022 in Panama, the Parties must take Decisions to provide international expertise, resources and financial support for Singapore, Kenya and Sri Lanka to confiscate and retain the Forty Thousand seized rosewood logs and do everything possible to ensure that the largest ever seizures of CITES-listed species are not returned to the smugglers for sale into the illegal, international rosewood trade. CITES Parties should also take a Decision to ensure that a comprehensive program is implemented to ensure that the seized logs, the stockpiles in Madagascar and the remaining rosewood and ebony trees are protected.
The 2013 CITES Action Plan for Madagascar embodied all of the elements that scientists concluded were necessary to protect the remaining Malagasy species of rosewood and ebony. Despite repeated attention, not a single one of the elements has yet to be fully implemented, while progress has been reported on several of the elements. CITES and its Parties must use the seizure of the 40,000 precious logs and the proposed sale of the Official stockpiles as an opportunity and a wakeup call to finally provide the expertise, resources and funding necessary to the Malagasy government to allow it to prioritize the protection of its rosewood and ebony forests and the unique species that depend on them.
Respectfully submitted,