As China Cracks Down on Ivory, Japan’s Open Market Becomes a Backdoor for Traffickers

Hajime Sasaki, president of antiquities shops, displaying a decorative item made from ivory and designed in the shape of vegetables at his shop in Tokyo on December 4, 2025. Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI / AFP

At his store in Tokyo’s ritzy Ginza district, Hajime Sasaki displays a disparate array of wares, from chopsticks to Buddha statues — including many made of ivory.

International trade in elephant ivory is illegal, but Japan hosts one of the world’s largest remaining legal domestic markets for the product, which can only be bought and sold within its borders.

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by Agence France-Presse

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