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For nearly 20 years, the staff of The Humane Society of Canada have actively participated in the administration and enforcement of CITES, an United Nations treaty to which 172 nations, including Canada (which was a founding member) are signatories. CITES stands for the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species and is the most important wildlife treaty in the world.

According to INTERPOL, drugs, weapons and endangered species are the three most illegally traded commodities in the world. INTERPOL estimates that the global illegal trade in endangered species is worth more than $20 billion dollars a year and is steadily growing. The international commercial wildlife trade is worth billions of dollars annually and has been responsible for the decline of wild populations of a number of species of animals and plants. The Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) treaty was first signed in 1973 in order to protect certain species of wild fauna and flora against over-exploitation through commercial trade. CITES first entered into force on 9 July 1975.

CITES provides three levels of protection for species in international commercial trade.

CITES Appendix I

Includes those species that are threatened with extinction and that are or may be affected by international commercial trade. These species may not be traded internationally for primarily commercial purposes. However, such species may be exported and imported for non-commercial purposes. Examples of species on CITES Appendix I are tigers, Asian elephants, chimpanzees, humpback whales, sun bears, scarlet macaws, sea turtles, Brazilian rosewood, giant tropical pitcher plants, and Asian tropical lady's slipper orchids.

CITES Appendix II

Includes those species that, although not necessarily threatened with extinction, may become so unless trade is strictly regulated in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival. Species also may be listed on Appendix II if their parts or products cannot be readily distinguished from those of other species listed on CITES Appendix I or II. International commercial trade in Appendix II species is allowed, but is strictly controlled. Parties may only grant a permit to export such species after it has determined that the export will not be detrimental to the survival of the species. Examples of species listed on Appendix II are American black bears, southern fur seals, Hartmann's mountain zebra, toco toucans, iguanas, Pacific Coast mahogany, triangle palm, and cyclamens.

CITES Appendix III

Includes those species that any Party has identified as being subject to regulation of exploitation within its jurisdiction and as needing the cooperation of other Parties to monitor international trade in the species. Such cooperation is achieved primarily by the issuance of export permits by a state which has included the species in Appendix III (these may be granted only if the specimen was not obtained in contravention of the laws of the exporting Party) and by the issuance of certificates of origin by other states that export Appendix III species. Examples of species listed on Appendix III and the countries that listed them are two-toed sloths (Costa Rica), African civets (Botswana), African waxbill (Ghana), and bigleaf mahogany (Costa Rica, Brazil, Mexico)

A CITES export permit for any live specimen of a species listed on any CITES Appendix may be granted only when the Management Authority of the exporting Party is satisfied that it will be prepared and shipped so as to minimize the risk of injury, damage to health, or cruel treatment.

CITES Parties are expected to implement and enforce the treaty's provisions through domestic legislation. Each Party must establish a CITES Management Authority to issue import and export permits, to monitor trade in CITES species, and to compile annual trade reports, and a CITES Scientific Authority to provide scientific expertise on import and export decisions. Fundamental to this approach is the use of precaution in cases of uncertainty: Trade should not be allowed unless there are sufficient information and safeguards to ensure that a species is protected from over-utilization.

The Parties consider and vote on proposals to add or delete species from Appendices I and II at their biennial (or triennial) meetings of the Conference of the Parties (COPs). Parties may unilaterally add species to Appendix III at any time.

CITES COPs also provide an opportunity for Parties to consider and vote on resolutions that interpret the language of the treaty. For example, the Parties have adopted resolutions providing criteria for listing species on the CITES Appendices, a mechanism for reviewing the trade in Appendix II species to ensure that it is not detrimental to the survival of species, and a procedure for approving and registering operations that captive breed or ranch for commercial purposes species listed on CITES Appendix I.

Three CITES Committees--the Standing, Animals, and Plants Committees--each composed of Party representatives from six geographic regions [Oceania, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America], are active between COPs.

A list of amendments to Appendix I & II species listings as agreed upon at the 13^th Conference Of the Parties (CoP) in Bangkok, 2004 is available here

The 8th edition of The Evolution of CITES is now available.

This book presents the provisions of the Convention and relevant Resolutions and Decisions in an accessible way as well as provides explanations and comments to facilitate an understanding of the Convention and of how it should be implemented.

News from The CITES Meeting in the Hague (CITES Cop 14)

CITES Decisions Map the Future of Wildlife Trade - ENS
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China tiger trade ban won't last: official - Reuters
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CITES Shelters Sawfish, Eels, But Enforcement Lacking - ENS
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Nature ministers snared by elephant debate - AFP
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A Red Letter Day for Red and Pink Corals at CITES - SSN
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U.N. talks rebuke China for considering tiger trade - Reuters
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Caribbean marine turtles: CITES action on over-exploitation - Traffic
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China restaurant served banned tiger meat: CITES - Reuters
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Total Ban on Illegal Trade of Tiger Organs and Preservation of Tigers - Govt of India Press Release
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Kenya: Country May Be Losing Fight to Protect Its Rare Wildlife - The Nation
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UN Conference Stands Firm Against Whale Trade - SSN
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EU moves to reel in overfishing of bluefin tuna, eel - China Post
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Let Elephants Keep Their Ivory -- a Video Message for the CITES Convention - Press Release Newswire
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Logging Threatens Indonesia's Orangutans - Houston Chronicle
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African nations rethink elephants and ivory - CNN
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Eels, sawfish get trade protection from U.N. - Reuters
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China to revive trade in tiger parts - IBN
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Africa struggles to reach compromise solution on elephants - AFP
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Kenya Wildlife Heroes Honored in the Hague - Coast Week
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Troubled Waters For Sharks on World Oceans Day - SSN
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CITES Moves Speedily To Protect Slow Loris - SSN
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US Forced To Back Off On Bobcats - SSN
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CITES Ablaze Over Timber - SSN
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Kenya Pushes for Total Ban On Ivory Trade - The Nation
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leopards and rhinos in the crosshairs at cites: endangered animals to be slaughtered for sport - Al Bawaba
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Killed Ranger Honoured at the Hague - Kenyan Wildlife Service
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Fur is back ... and so is illegal fur trade - Independent Online
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Cedar, rosewood fail to win protection at U.N. talks - Reuters
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Take a bow; endangered species meeting slaps trade regulations on tree used by violinists - AP
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Too cute for comfort - BBC
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Butterflies becoming extinct due to poaching for trade - New Kerala
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Nepal nabs shawl smugglers - The Sunday Times
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Seized turtles for permanent display - Daily Express
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Seized turtles for permanent display - Daily Express
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Authorities to discuss elephant management - BuaNews
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