He noted that Japan had failed to control internal sales in the past but has since improved its legislation, and China's need to increase the degree of specialization of agents dealing with wildlife crime. He said every Party should help tackle illegal killing and trading worldwide. Worked Ivory, such as bracelets or necklaces, are primarily purchased by tourists, international officials and diplomats, while raw ivory is primarily purchased by diplomats. Martin said much African ivory is delivered to South Korea and China. As an indicator, he sited the case of a small park where the elephant population has dwindled from 350 to 5 since 1996.
Military presence prohibits accurate data gathering in other areas.
He countered the common argument in support of ivory trade to benefit local communities, noting that the one-off trade led to increased poaching in Kenya, which threatens the Maasai economic basis as they rely on elephants to clear forests to allow their cattle to graze. He explained that only some male Asian Elephants carry tusks, and that there are only approximately 1,000 remaining in India. He characterized the 1989 ban on trade as the single greatest conservation efforts for elephants, and the 1997 decision to allow the one-off trade as the biggest blunder. He urged a complete ban on ivory be reinstated. Although the briefings were open only to the media, conference participants were able to follow the presentations on closed-circuit television.