March 2005

Bear advocates have cause to celebrate following the announcement by the government of Vietnam and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) that plans for phasing out bear farming in Vietnam have been agreed upon. The decision comes as a result of intense meetings between WSPA and the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), which took place in February of this year in Hanoi.

The agreement outlines comprehensive government plans to end the practice of bear farming via a multi-tiered strategy of registering and microchipping all captive bears, phasing out the breeding of bears held on farms, and strengthening the ban on taking bears from the wild.  WSPA will work with MARD to phase out bear farms and support the future development of a bear rescue center in Cat Tien National Park.

WSPA Campaigns Director Leah Garces was present at the meetings in Hanoi and signed the Memorandum of Understanding with Mr. Ha Cong Tuan, Director of the Forest Protection Department. Following the formal announcement by Vietnam, Garces said, “WSPA congratulates the Vietnamese Government on this positive step and looks forward to assisting in the implementation of this plan. This could be the beginning of the end of the bear farming industry, as the only other countries that still tolerate this form of cruelty are China and Korea.”

WSPA estimates that there are up to 3,000 bears living on farms in Vietnam, all of which will be registered and microchipped in 2005. The bears are typically confined in tiny cages for the duration of their lives. Unable to stand upright or turn around, the suffering is unimaginable. Their bile is extracted through various methods including a syringe directly into their gall bladder and the insertion of a steel catheter into their abdomen.
 
Mr. Ha Cong Tuan, Director of the Forest Protection Department said, “The Vietnamese Forest Protection Department, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is committed to the phasing out of bears in captivity in Viet Nam and we are delighted to be working in collaboration with WSPA to implement this important project.”

Bear bile is used in traditional medicine for its perceived therapeutic benefits. In recent years, China has also begun using bear bile in such luxury items as shampoo and wine. Since there are now dozens of alternatives to bear bile available, WSPA is committed to seeing the cruelty of bear farming stopped once and for all and applauds the recent steps taken by Vietnam to protect bears.

To read the Memordandum of Understanding signed by WSPA and the Vietnam government, click here.

To read about a recent bear poaching case in Alaska dealing with the illegal trade in bear parts, click here.

Please check this site often for updates on this situation.