Did you know that the U.K. is the largest legal ivory exporter in the world, exporting a shocking 370% more ivory than the world's second largest exporter (the U.S.)? Yet unbelievably, British Prime Minister Theresa May quietly dropped her own party’s earlier pledge to ban all ivory sales.
By allowing legal (antique) ivory to be sold, the U.K. is paving the way for brutal poachers to get their illegal ivory into the market, resulting in bloodshed for innocent elephants.
Elephants endure excruciating deaths for the ivory trade; many are attacked with poison arrows, and it takes an agonizing 15 to 20 minutes to die after being hit. Once the elephant is dead, the poachers hack off their tusks. Because the rest of the elephant is “worthless” to them, the poachers often use battery acid to eat away the elephants’ flesh when they are done.
An elephant is killed every fifteen minutes for its ivory. If the cruel and illegal ivory trade continues, we could lose these amazing animals for good. Sign the petition to tell Theresa May that the U.K. government must honor their pledge to finally ban ALL ivory trade.