Battle For The Elephants Researh Assignment Paper - 275 Words

Battle For The Elephants Researh Assignment Paper (Essay Sample) Content: BATTLE FOR THE ELEPHANTSName:Professor:Course Name:The international trade in ivory received a ban in 1989. However, the African elephants are not safe from poachers due to the constant demand for their precious ivory. More than ten thousand elephants are killed yearly with Asia being the biggest consumer. The primary use for ivory is for carving out jewelry and ornaments (Gettleman, 2012).There are several factors that the poachers, consumers and the government use to justify their support for poaching of elephants for ivory. The Asian governments claim that it is good to recognize the skill of an old craftsman who has experience in the art. These governments indicate that since such men have been doing the work of art for a long time, they should not be done away with due to reasons of viewing poaching as a bad system. Besides, they indicate that most of the ivory in their country is legal from trade made with African nations that have ivory showrooms containing con fiscated tusks (Documentary, 2014). The consumers, on the other hand, support the hunting of elephants for ivory due to their need for declaring their economic status. There are those that value the ivory for its spiritual purpose in Buddhism. The huge population in China is made up of people who can afford the expensive ivory products thus making it useful for decoration purposes. The poachers, on the other hand, come from poor African countries. It means that poachers are poor individuals who find poaching as one of the highest paying investment. The high demand for ivory has made the tusks from one adult elephant worth more than ten times the average yearly income that individuals earn in the African nations. The offer is very welcoming leaving no doubt that poachers support the hunting of elephants due to the money it brings. With the high demand for ivory, a ready market and willing poachers, everyone is willing to undertake the costs and risks involved in the poaching industry . Utilitarian theory best describes the situation since ivory receives more value over the life of the elephant (Documentary, 2014).The dealers and traders of the ivory belief that they act as intermediaries for the sale of ivory and transfer from poachers to the customers. Their main reason for indulging in the activity is due to the money that it brings them. Trading in the ivory industry gets justification for the same reason as that indicated by poachers. Thus the money associated with ivory trading attracts dealers. The moral reason is that poaching will uplift their living standards and give them an employment opportunity too. Therefore, the utilitarian theory best describes the situation since ivory receives more value over the life of the elephant (Documentary, 2014). Besides, the traders get the chance to interact with wealthy people in business while conducting the illegal business. The exposure that they receive from such interactions makes them reluctant from leaving the industry.The Chinese have a long history in ivory use. They valued it for functional use and art. They used ivory to make images of deities, carvings, and also for holy objects. Modern China now takes part in the industrial production of ivory products due to their high demand. The cultural viewpoints of ivory in the Asian countries as art come with tremendous consequences. It has led to increased level of illegal trade in the African countries as traders and poachers take part in the banned trade. Besides, the Asian markets are also flooded with illegal ivory but deny the claims of involvement in that kind of business (Kelley, 2013). The governments in most of the African nations do not talk of the endangered elephants in their nations thus bringing up issues on the level of transparency that is involved in the trade. A closer look at the issue indicates that some of the government officials in these countries participate in the business. That brings out the problem of corruption in the society. The Chinese have received accusations of using their government planes to transport ivory from the African nations especially Kenya and Tanzania. The ethical issue is that the Chinese government is involved in the illegal shipment. Besides, instead of taxing ivory and discouraging its market, it is seen to get involved and also legalize some of the stores that retail its products. Poaching has significantly reduced the number of elephants to a state where some fear that they will become extinct. Besides, most of the elephants live in Africa, and they represent their heritage. Therefore, continued poaching will bring down the rich African heritage. Craft is important since it enables people to remember their past. Most of the ancient art are carvings from ivory. The old ivory art needs preservation for its beauty and social value. However, use of ivory in the modern world should be totally discouraged since it will endanger the animals that produce this precious commo dity (Kelley, 2013). Animals have feelings, and they should not receive ill treatment due to the selfish wants of the humans. Elephants are social animals and they live in organized herds. Therefore, their lives should be more important than the ivory. Hence the application of the utilitarian theory.Tanzanias decision to sell their ivory stockpile instead of burning it could bring a huge supply to the market. The supply may increase the demand for ivory in Asia due to its high social value (Nowak, 2012). The act of selling may boost the trade to greater heights hence increasing the corruption involved and the poaching activities too. However, the country will benefit from the sale, and this will boost its economy since ivory fetches high prices in the markets. The conservation efforts, on the other hand, will be compromised. It is because many people will realize the real amount of money associated with the trade hence encouraging more poachers and dealers (Morell, 2013). The busine ss involves an organized system of extraction and exportation of the ivory. The involvement of gangs has brought interest to the global organized crimes. Sale of the stockpile would cause active participation of such groups in trying to steal or poach more elephants for ivory. The need for involvement in the crime to get the ivory to fund their activities would be due to the rise in its demand after the announcement of sale by the Tanzanian government. The situation involves care ethics. It is because the government is after selling the ivory both for the conservation of elephants and improving the citizens living standards.The ivory wars involve rangers and poachers. The poachers are after killing elephants for their valuable tusks while the Rangers are working towards the conservation and protection of the elephants (Morell, 2013). Utilitarian theory best describes the situation since each team views the case from a different perspective. The Rangers see value in the elephants lif e while the poacher sees value in its tusks. The differences in ideas bring about the conflict.The activists are campaigning to see the ban on ivory trade. They believe that Chinas growing existence in African countries has increased the rate at which the illegal trade is increasing (Nowak, 2012). They think that people should not be involved in the terror that accompanies the trade. The utilitarian theory takes part in this case since the activists will judge the issue from two sides. They will consider the gain that humans have from the ivory to the loss of the elephant. In this case, it is more important ...