The Education for Nature-Vietnam (ENV) group has called on member countries of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) to vote against Swaziland’s proposal to legalise the rhino horn trade. 

Vietnam will vote against Swaziland's proposal to legalise the rhino horn trade.

Ahead of the conference of CITES member countries in Johannesburg, South Africa, from September 24 to October 4, the ENV also opposed caging tigers and recommended delegates vote to increase the protection for pangolins. 

Vu Thi Quyen, Director of the ENV, hoped that the right decisions would be made at the conference to protect endangered animals. 

The ENV backed the proposal to raise the protection level for pangolins from Appendix II to Appendix I of CITES. 

Putting the protection of all the eight species of pangolins at the same level as tigers combined with the upcoming modified Law on Criminals will allow Vietnamese law-enforcement agencies to impose punishment related to pangolin trading, the centre said.

VNA