Irrawaddy Dolphin Proposal Reflects
Intricacies of the CITES Process

It now looks as though there may be difficulty in reaching agreement on Thailand's Proposal 3, the transfer from Appendix II to Appendix I for Orcaella brevirostris, the Irrawaddy dolphin. Even inside the Thailand government, two ministries appear to be at odds over this proposal, which according to The Nation (Tuesday October 5, 2004) would put an end to whatever amount of international trade takes place at this time. The Irrawaddy dolphin is featured in some aquaria and water shows, and it is traded in presently unknown numbers for this purpose. In other newspaper reports, it was denied that any disagreement exists.

According to The Nation article, the Thailand Fishery Department is concerned that accidental by-catch of Appendix-I listed Irrawaddy dolphins would likely result in trade problems for fishermen - as has happened in the past with the turtle by-catch issue. The Thailand Ministry of Natural Resources apparently feels this is groundless as there should be no fishing in the habitat of the animals. A ban on live specimen trade would be irrelevant to Irrawaddy dolphin conservation in view of this problem across the range.

Because of practical problems associated with Appendix-I listing, and of the lack of effective conservation results, several national fisheries institutions are seriously questioning the appropriateness of an Appendix-I listing for the Irrawaddy dolphin. Most fisheries groups strongly oppose the proposal. CITES will need to listen carefully to the arguments presented by Thailand and to those with direct responsibility for fisheries management in all range states. No matter what the truth is behind the newspaper reports, they illustrate the complexity and diversity of opinions that exist on CITES listing proposals.