The international community raises the level of protection of Hoan Kiem turtles

Rare Rare Turtle, ie Turtle Lake Sword, is one of the turtles in Vietnam that has been raised to the level of protection in the Convention on International Trade in Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

At the 16th CITES conference taking place in Bangkok, Thailand from March 3 to March 14, nearly 200 delegates agreed to raise the protection level of Hoan Kiem turtles (Rafetus swinhoei) from Appendix III to the appendix. II. Annex III includes all species that each member state requires under their laws to prevent or limit exploitation and the need for cooperation with other member states to control trade. . Appendix II includes all species, although not currently threatened with extinction, but can be reached if the specimen trade of that species does not follow strict regulations to avoid inappropriate use of their existence.

Hoan Kiem Turtle. (Photo provided by Professor Ha Dinh Duc)

Hoan Kiem Turtle is endemic to Vietnam. According to scientists, there are only 4 individuals in the world like turtle Hoan Kiem Lake, in which one lives in this lake and one lives in Dong Mo Lake (Son Tay, Hanoi). The other two children are kept in China.

Earlier last month, Professor Ha Dinh Duc asked Hanoi city to consider and submit to the government to recognize Ho Guom turtle as a national treasure, because Mr. Duc said, "he" Turtle is living with the specimen and the skeleton of Turtle Lake Sword not only brings historical value, but also a cultural and spiritual heritage of many Vietnamese people. The Department of Culture - Sports and Tourism has been assigned by the City to study this proposal.

Besides Hoan Kiem turtles, 11 other species in Vietnam also raise the protection level in the convention, including another endemic turtle of our country is the Central Turtle (Mauremys annamensis).

At the meeting, Vietnam also proposed to put the golden boxed turtle and the Chinese turtle into the regular CITES assessment list to quickly prioritize the two species present in the Appendix I. Appendix This includes species threatened with extinction due to or possible trade. The trade of specimens of these species must follow strict regulations in order not to continue to threaten their existence and can only be done in the exception.

According to experts, unsustainable trade is the main reason why Vietnamese turtles and freshwater turtles face being turned into food, pets, and traditional medicine remedies. . Improving CITES lists is a very important step to help tighten the management of these trade activities.