Illegal Wildlife Trade In Laos: How Chinese Tourists Are Targeted By Scammers

Tuesday, July 22, 2025

Laos is simply a state pinch heavy taste and earthy wealth, though now it’s besides nan tract of a chilling achromatic marketplace that’s sewage itself locked connected tourists, namely those from China. Its picturesque towns of Luang Prabang and Vientiane person agelong been connected travelers‘ must-see lists, but caller grounds highlights nan worrying inclination of forbidden wildlife merchandise availability. Now these illicit wares—from ivory and rhino horn to carnivore bile—are backmost connected unfastened waste successful scores of shops successful these cities, slashing their prices, built connected nan backs of unsuspecting tourists, mostly aged Chinese connected inexpensive package tours.

The Rise of Illegal Wildlife Shops

A associated investigation has revealed nan beingness of much than 20 locations successful Laos, peculiarly successful Luang Prabang and Vientiane, wherever forbidden wildlife products are sold connected a important scale. These shops, often disguised arsenic cafes, taste centers, aliases jewelry stores, cater exclusively to Chinese visitors who are convinced that they are purchasing ineligible and ethical items. Despite being subjected to laws prohibiting nan waste of specified products, galore of these shops run successful plain sight, often pinch deceptive trading strategies and clone legitimacy.

The mostly of these shops are strategically located on well-established tourer routes, pinch circuit operators making arrangements for their groups to sojourn them. Tourists, peculiarly aged Chinese travelers, are coerced into purchasing these forbidden wildlife products done misleading claims astir conservation and nan expected legality of nan trade. The wide web has quickly expanded, pinch a important surge successful forbidden wildlife income observed successful 2024 and 2025.

A Deceptive Marketing Tactic

Once wrong these shops, visitors are often led done staged displays designed to person them of nan legitimacy of their purchases. In immoderate cases, nan shops are dressed up pinch images of elephants, monks, and governmental figures, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, successful an effort to nexus nan waste and acquisition to conservation and taste ties betwixt Laos and China. In 1 reported scenario, visitors are shown really elephants successful Laos supposedly request their tusks trimmed for their comfort, a declare that intends to warrant nan waste of ivory.

The sellers usage elaborate speeches to guarantee visitors that their acquisition of rhino horn, carnivore bile, aliases ivory will straight lend to conservation efforts and moreover trim poorness successful Laos. They usage affectional manipulation, highlighting nan expected benefits to some animals and section communities. This disinformation is compounded by nan show of symbolic imagery, specified arsenic monks blessing ivory tusks aliases elephants being “treated” for their tusks’ discomfort, contempt nan deficiency of immoderate technological backing for specified claims.

The Role of Tour Companies

Tour operators play a important domiciled successful enabling nan maturation of this illicit trade. Package tours, which typically see stops astatine these wildlife shops, are marketed arsenic all-inclusive experiences designed to expose Chinese visitors to nan historical ties betwixt Laos and China. These circuit groups are often taken straight to forbidden wildlife shops, wherever they are encouraged to acquisition endangered type products. These operators are believed to person important commissions of up to 40% of nan sales, ensuring their financial engagement successful nan illicit transactions.

Many of nan products offered for waste astatine these shops are priced good supra marketplace value, highlighting nan lucrative quality of nan trade. Rhino horn, for example, which typically sells for astir $17 per gram successful Asia, tin beryllium priced arsenic precocious arsenic $600 per gram successful these shops. Such inflated prices, coupled pinch nan sheer number of visitors arriving annually, propose that nan underground wildlife marketplace successful Laos could beryllium worthy tens of millions of dollars.

The Role of Laos’ Government

Despite being a signatory to nan Convention connected International Trade successful Endangered Species (CITES), which bans nan waste of ivory, rhino horn, and different endangered type products, Laos has faced disapproval for its nonaccomplishment to forestall nan wide waste of specified items. Official authorities records show that nan Ministry of Forestry has been progressive successful implementing caller policies and enforcement measures, including nan training of customs unit and nan installation of scanning exertion astatine nan China-Laos railway. However, contempt these efforts, forbidden wildlife products proceed to beryllium sold successful ample quantities.

Local rule enforcement agencies person admitted that galore of these shops run successful a semi-covert manner, often hidden down layers of information and disguised arsenic morganatic businesses. These shops often show misleading signage and moreover declare ties to authorities entities, specified arsenic nan military, successful an effort to lend credibility to their operations.

The Laos Department of Forestry has emphasized that nan waste of ivory, rhino horn, and different CITES-listed type is strictly prohibited. However, nan continued cognition of these wildlife markets suggests a request for stronger enforcement and a much coordinated world consequence to curb nan forbidden trade.

The Impact of nan China-Laos Railway

The caller opening of nan China-Laos railway has further exacerbated nan rumor by facilitating nan accelerated activity of visitors betwixt nan 2 countries. In 2024, nan number of Chinese visitors visiting Laos surged to complete 1 million, galore of whom traveled via nan caller obstruction line. While this has provided an economical boost to Laos, it has besides contributed to nan emergence successful forbidden wildlife trade, arsenic visitors are much apt to sojourn these forbidden shops during their stays.

Customs authorities person expressed concerns astir nan easiness pinch which forbidden wildlife products could beryllium smuggled crossed borders, peculiarly via nan railway. However, measures specified arsenic customs scanners and training for unit person been put successful spot to observe illicit wildlife items being trafficked crossed nan border.

An Ongoing Battle Against Wildlife Trafficking

What’s occurring successful Laos is portion of a world problem successful which lax enforcement—and continued request for wildlife products successful immoderate areas—fuels nan clandestine trade. The ongoing waste and acquisition successful type connected nan separator of extinction—such arsenic elephants, rhinos, and pangolins—is pushing these animals to nan brink. Although nan Laos authorities has taken immoderate measures to antagonistic nan problem, experts opportunity much urgent action is required to put a extremity to forbidden wildlife trade.

And 1 of nan astir alarming things you tin do is sound nan siren erstwhile encountering specified a business and get visitors involved, who galore times do not cognize that they are purchasing forbidden things. Footage uploaded by Chinese visitors to societal networks for illustration Douyin (the Chinese type of TikTok) has besides helped to stitchery important grounds of nan shops and products progressive successful nan illicit waste and acquisition and helped investigators corroborate their whereabouts.

Although it’s often difficult to straight combat specified secretive operations, location is dream that ongoing outreach to nan tourer organization and amended rule enforcement will proceed to thief put a extremity to nan forbidden wildlife waste and acquisition successful Laos and elsewhere.

References: CITES (Convention connected International Trade successful Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora)