China vows stringent punishment for illegal trade, consumption of wildlife

BEIJING -- Chinese authorities on Thursday issued a guideline vowing to severely punish illegal purchases of wild animals for consumption or other purposes.

The guideline, jointly issued by the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Justice, aims to resolutely eliminate the practice of eating wild animals.

It also called for cracking down on illegal hunting and killing of wildlife, as well as illegal purchases, transportation, sales, import and export of wildlife and wildlife products, to cut off the profit chain of the illegal wildlife trade.

Factors, including whether the animals involved are artificially bred, how endangered the species are and the intensity of damage to wildlife resources, should be taken into account in sentencing, the guideline noted.