Demand for elephant skin, trunk and penis drives rapid rise in poaching in Myanmar
by Axel Kronholm in Okekan from Environment | The Guardian on (#2S49Y)
A growth in demand for elephant parts to be used in traditional medicine in Asia means the number of elephants being killed in Myanmar is rising
Case files and laminated photos of poachers spill out of captain Than Naing's folder. As the chief of police in Okekan township, one of Myanmar's recent poaching hotspots, he is trying to track down the men who have killed at least three elephants in the area over the past year. So far, he has arrested 11 people suspected of having assisted the poachers. Meanwhile the poachers themselves remain at large.
"These are the two men who we believe killed one of the elephants," he says, pointing to two photos. "They are still on the run."
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