Leonardo DiCaprio calls on Thailand to ban ivory trade

GlobalPost

Actor Leonardo DiCaprio is continuing his fight to save wildlife, calling on the Thai Government to ban the trade of ivory, AP reported.

Under the current laws, ivory from domesticated elephants can be traded legally, which has led to large amounts of African ivory being illegally imported to Thailand annually.

Activists warn that elephants are under threat as demand grows for their parts.

“Whole populations are at risk of being wiped out if we don’t take immediate action to shut down this illicit trade,” DiCaprio, who is on the World Wildlife Fund board, said. 

The international conservation group said in a statement Tuesday that DiCaprio sent a personal email to his friends and supporters asking them to sign a petition to ban the ivory trade, Access Hollywood reported.

In the email, DiCaprio, who stars in the current film “Django Unchained”, said it was up to the Thai government to take the lead on elephant conservation.

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