CITES Secretariat imposes sanctions on Mexico for condoning poaching

The secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) banned Mexico from trading 3,148 species of plants and animals due to insufficiently active fight against illegal fishing of totoaba and California porpoise. This was reported on Tuesday by the Spanish newspaper Pais. In addition to Mexico, there are only six countries on the black list of the organization: Somalia, Djibouti, Liberia, Sao Tome and Principe, Afghanistan and Libya. Sanctions will remain in place until the Secretariat determines that Mexico City is making sufficient efforts to protect endangered species. According to Ernesto Zazueta, chairman of the Association of Animal Farms, Hatcheries and Fisheries of Mexico, "The CITES sanctions represent an embargo of catastrophic, unprecedented proportions, which will have an impact on both trade and our reputation abroad." The Mexican Foreign Ministry has already sent a delegation to Geneva to discuss possible lifting of ...