NOTIFICATION TO THE PARTIES

							No. 676              Lausanne, 30 June 1992


CONCERNING:


                                          PHILIPPINES

               National Legislation Prohibiting the Export of Corals and Tridacnidae


1.   The Secretariat has been increasingly concerned about enforcement policy in the
     Philippines regarding the export of corals and specimens of Tridacnidae spp. from that
     country. National legislation in the Philippines has banned the export of specimens of these
     CITES species, with the exception of Tridacna crocea and finished products from black
     corals (Antipatharia spp.). The Secretariat has assisted the Management Authority of the
     Philippines in the enforcement of this national legislation, through the issuance of
     Notifications to the Parties Nos. 404 and 514 (for corals) and No. 663 (for Tridacnidae).

2.   The recent temporary lifting of these trade bans by the Government of the Philippines to
     allow the export of stockpiled specimens has, in many cases, created problems of
     implementation and interpretation of the Convention for importing Parties and the
     Secretariat. Evidence in some cases indicates that some recent shipments have contained
     freshly taken specimens, while others have contained either quantities in excess of the
     amounts authorized for export or specimens of species which do not correspond to those
     indicated on the export permits. These exports are in contravention of Article IV, paragraph
     2(b), of the Convention. These problems have resulted in several shipments being seized
     by importing countries. The Secretariat believes that the Government of the Philippines has
     not adequately monitored the export of these stockpiled specimens.

3.   At the twenty-eighth meeting of the Standing Committee (22-25 June 1992), the Secretariat
     informed the Committee of these problems. As a result, the following recommendations
     were made by the Standing Committee to the Secretariat:

     (NOTE: As T. crocea has not been included in a ban on export, specimens of this species
     are excluded from these recommendations.)

     a) Until further notice, the Secretariat should not transmit to the Parties information
        received from the Philippines on the temporary suspension of bans on export of
        specimens of marine species listed in the CITES appendices. The Management
        Authority of the Philippines should be responsible in the future for informing countries of
        import about such actions.
b) Effective immediately, the Secretariat should no longer recognize the existence of any
   pre-ban stockpiles of corals and Tridacnidae in the Philippines.

c) The Secretariat should ask the Management Authority in Quezon City to restrict the
   issuance of export permits for marine species to a central authority, although the current
   policy is to issue permits within the regional offices.

d) The Secretariat should urge the Government of the Philippines to adopt and strictly
   implement management programmes for marine species.