Vietnam attacked over tiger paste auction plan

VIETNAM'S plans to sell tiger paste - made from the bones of the endangered species - have been attacked by conservationists worldwide.

Officials in northern Thanh Hoa province last month agreed to auction six pounds of the paste worth 20,000 though a date has not been set.

Vietnam bans the hunting or trade of wild animals and their products, but the ministry of agriculture issued a directive allowing its use in making medicines.

In Vietnam, tiger bones are used to make expensive traditional medicines purported to cure many illnesses. Nguyen Thi Phuong Dung, deputy director of Hanoi-based Education for Nature Vietnam, said Thanh Hoa authorities had used a "loophole" in the law to allow the sale of the paste.

"The auctions go against conservation efforts," she said, adding the move has "helped legitimise the trade of the animal".

"We had recommended that the paste be destroyed to send a clear message to the public that the authorities do not encourage the consumption of wild animals' products," she said.

Wildlife experts warned at a summit last month in St Petersburg, Russia, that wild tigers could become extinct in 12 years if countries where they still roam fail to take quick action to protect their habitats and step up the fight against poaching.

The World Wildlife Fund and other experts say only about 3,200 tigers remain in the wild - down from an estimated 100,000 a century ago.