No. 869 Geneva, 31 August 1995
1. As a result of recommendations made by the Animals Committee in accordance with Resolution Conf. 8.9, the Secretariat has, since June 1992, been in communication with the Management Authority of China regarding trade in specimens of Prionailurus bengalensis (formerly known as Felis bengalensis). As a result of recommendations made by the Standing Committee, the Management Authority of China has not permitted the export of specimens of this species since April 1993.
2. According to information received by the Secretariat, there has been no legal taking of specimens of Prionailurus bengalensis from the wild in China since 1989, and such taking is still prohibited.
3. However, there is in China a stock of skins, plates and garments derived from skins of this species. The Management Authority of China has undertaken an inventory of these specimens. They account for a total of 803,052 skins.
4. A field survey of Prionailurus bengalensis in China is currently under way, in a project approved by the CITES Standing Committee. The Management Authority of China has stated that no exports of skins or products not already held in stock will be permitted until the field survey has been completed and a management programme established on the basis of it. The Management Authority of China has also devised a system for marking all Prionailurus bengalensis specimens to be exported.
5. Each item from the stock of specimens Prionailurus bengalensis shall be marked with a tag attached before export. Each tag comprises an opaque white disc attached by string to a clear plastic label on one side and to the specimen traded on the other side. The disc has the letters CNMA embossed on both sides. The clear plastic label is rectangular and has a rectangle of white printed card sealed into it. The labels are for four types of specimens: skins, plates, garments and other specimens. Each label indicates the name of the species, the type of specimen, a unique serial number and a running total of the number of skins whose export has been authorized. The reverse side of each label bears a silvered disk (diametre 2 cm) with a hologram of the CITES logo. Samples of the tags are shown on the attached sheet.
6. The Standing Committee's recommendation to suspend imports has therefore been withdrawn.
