The Usage Of Rhino Horn In Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been developed over 3,000 years of medical practice which is represented in a variety of techniques, for instance, the use of Chinese herbs, nutrients, acupuncture, and massage. Chinese doctors had discovered that the human's body, mind and spirit were completely connected and were affected by the external environment. TCM has been told to have the ability to treat diseases.
However, animals like the Rhinoceros has been used as a part of traditional medication. Rhinos are also used to present a symbol of wealth and prosperity. The Rhino horn is explicitly used as a fine powder which is dissolved in water as it is used to treat fevers, rheumatism, gout, and other disorders. Rhino horns are used widely internationally in Asia, especially Singapore.
Just last year (2017), Singapore Senior Minister of State for Health, Chee Hong Tat announced that an amount of $10 million SGD would be invested in supporting and developing TCM. Mr. Chee also stated that $5 million SGD of the amount will go to a new TCM development grant. Lixin Huang, President of the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine said that the recent trend in constant increasing trade of Rhino Horn is obtained from the claim that the horn could potentially act as a cure for cancer.
Similarly, the Hong Kong University studies determined that "rhinoceros horn can reduce fever, but only at rather high dosage levels when prescribed as a single drug". Due to the high dosage levels, the demand for rhino horn steadily increases. On the contrary, NGO, Save The Rhino (STR) states that South African Rhinos are heavily targetted for their horn in the production of TCM. According to STR, poachers now have more sophisticated weaponry which permits them to track and kill rhinos at a faster rate. Rhinos are shot with tranquilizers before their horns are hacked and they gradually and painfully bleed to death.
In addition, these poachers are armed with guns hence, leaving anti-poaching teams incredibly vulnerable. Rhino horn contains keratin which is used for hair treatment. It is believed to work as an aphrodisiac, but there is no scientific proof. Author Richard Ellis of 'Tiger bone and rhino horn' (2005) says, "It is heartbreaking to realize that the world’s rhinos are being eliminated from the face of the earth in the name of medications that probably don’t work.” There has been no clear indication that rhino horn serves as a remedial purpose. However, the use of the rhino horn is a declaration to the influence of tradition and religion which millions of people follow and believe in.
If people are open and chose to believe in, prayer, acupuncture, and voodoo as an antidote, there is no reason as to why they shouldn't use Rhino horn. However, the Save the Rhino states that animals should not be killed to produce nostrums which have been proven to be ineffective. The latest statistics reflect that there are only 67 Javan rhinos left, < 80 Sumatran, 5,040 Black, an estimate of 3,500 Greater-one-horned and 19,666 White.
Lixin Huang, President of the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chairman of the Jiangsu People's Political Consultative Conference, and Executive Vice Governor of Jiangsu province expressed her views on TCM. She said declared that the Chinese believe that when the human body is in a harmonious and peaceful condition, its health and well-being is naturally controlled. The Chinese use the word Chi, which represents the major life force that flows through the human body and provides the mortality of life. Chi regulates physical, emotional mental and spiritual balance when an illness occurs.
When an illness takes place happens an imbalance may arise. Thus, the creation of TCM solely exists to reinstate the free flow of Chi throughout the body. More importantly, TCM is handmade and is personalized for one's specific need. This results in minimal side effects. In addition, TCM doesn't only serve the people in a singular country, it can be used internationally as it is proven to be effective and incredibly valuable for healthcare support with low cost and safety. Lixin also commented that Western medicine studies the parts of the body through technology and turn to drugs to deal with a disease which may lead to a stream of side effects. Patients prefer to practice this 3000-year-old healing art as it saves their lives, reduces their initial sufferings. TCM is often the last alternative method to heal for victims who were unable to find help elsewhere.
While the benefits of TCM appear to be favourable, the unfortunate fact is that rhinos are still being hunted despite the fact that the Chinese government had banned rhino horn in medicine since 1993. They had also banned traditional medication in pharmacopeia as well as medical textbooks. A member of China's National People's Congress (NPC), Chan Yung declared that he had collected 26 signatures from lawmakers to sponsor a formal "bill suggestion" which called for a general animal protection law. There were 36 signatures from delegates in Hong Kong who had accepted the animal protection law as well. A reason for this was due to the exceeding number of rhinos which are poached consistently.
An NGO which works in China, WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) China has been operating since 1996 and has engaged in several activities which include opposing illegal trade of any endangered species and encouraging a sustainable growth and peaceful coexistence of both wildlife and human communities. This shows to show that the Chinese locals are aiming towards protecting their animals. The WCS manages around 500 different conservation projects in more than 60 countries. They address four of the biggest issues that wildlife face, such as natural resource exploitation, climate change, the relationship between human and wildlife health as well as the development of human resources. They believe that China has intricate and vast ecosystems which need to be preserved. This includes the animals in grasslands, mountain forests, deserts, meadows, coastal marshes, and high-altitude lakes.
There are several types of solutions which need to take place in order to save the remaining number of rhinos. A possible way to protect the Rhinos in South Africa is through the Game Rangers' Association of Africa as well as the Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit. Both associations work towards conserving African wildlife. However, the Black Mamba Unit strickly work towards saving and maintaining the surviving species of the rhino.
The Black Mamba and the rangers from the Game Ranger's Association have been specially trained to patrol their reserves and keep a scouting team to keep poachers out. A method to further ensure this protection could be the use of more high tech electrical fences and providing rangers with more sophisticated weaponry. In addition, to maintain stability, conservation groups should work together with WWF to ensure sufficient action against poachers. TCM groups which have incorporated the 1993 ban of rhino in their products too should work together with WWF and find alternate methods of medicine.
An alternating method to prevent poachers from smuggling rhino horn is by ensuring harsher sentences on poachers in prisons to ensure prevention of this issue. Poachers who are convicted of an offense under the "NEMBA" law are subject to high fines and have five years of imprisonment. If the poacher is convicted for an offense which regards a protected or listed threatened animal, a fine could reach up to three times the initial value of the animal in South Africa. China claimed that it had controlled its illegal use of wildlife and that rhino horns have been banned since 1993 in their products internationally and domestically.
However, due to the shipments of illegal wildlife products from Africa to China, it proves that the Chinese laws are not sufficient to prevent the poachers. China should impose tighter laws on the poachers with proposals such as solitary confinement or caning instead of sentencing the offenders with a death penalty. A third solution to end the problem of poaching rhino could be using different kinds of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Even though traditional Chinese medicine is personalized to one's needs and is usually a combination of prescriptions, the use of rhino all together could be replaced by "Tai Chi" or other herbal remedies. Acupuncture is already widely used and is generally considered to be a safe process when it is performed by an experienced practitioner who uses sterile needles.
Acupuncture is known to improve the body's functions and it promotes a natural self-healing process through acupoints. This also includes techniques such as manual massage, heat therapy, cupping, and moxibustion. Several studies show that acupuncture helps to treat nausea and depression to physical back problems. Similarly, Tai Chi and Qi Gong are both practices for the mind and body. This shows that rhino horn is not necessary for such alternate treatment especially as it is available for all internationally. If this form of traditional Chinese medicine can be embraced, the number of poaching cases can decrease by a significant amount.
Personally, before researching this unit I felt that I was more ecocentric than anthropocentric or technocentric as I felt that the ecosystems existed before the creation of man hence, it deserves to be preserved and treated with kindness to a large extent. Additionally, as a child, I was exposed to religious texts which preach to the necessity of nature and animals. This concept is expressed in Hinduism. An example could be the Gods and Goddesses who each have a vahana like Ma Durga rides a lion/tiger, Shiva on a bull and Vishnu on Garuda.
Vahana expresses a being which is usually a mythical entity or an animal which is used as a vehicle. Each god has a vahana and it symbolizes the special power of the God. In Hinduism, its followers believe in reincarnation and the circle of life and these vahanas represent the previous incarnations of the God in an inferior birth. It also represents that the Gods and their animals are equal and that the cycle of nature and man are tied to each other in a very close bond. Similarly, in Hinduism, the Earth is seen as a manifestation of gods and goddesses hence, it must be treated with great respect.
I have also been influenced by school as when we were younger, we were introduced to environmentally friendly organizations like the New Water factory and Mana Mana Beach Clean Up. Similarly, the annual trips that we have are also an example of activities which have influenced me over the years like the trips to Tamenegara and Sibu. But, due to the research, I feel that I am now towards being an ecocentric and technocentric as I believe that new and developing technology can help to reduce the recurring problems. An event which made me modify my perspective was the use of sophisticated weaponry to protect the remaining species (and sub-species) of rhino.
In addition, another piece of information was Lixin Huang's speech which showed that an alternate way to have rhino horn in TCM. Rhino horn could be altered and a new formula of powder could be created in the laboratory with the same properties as the animal products. This proved that technology could be applied to these issues to improve them and eradicate older methods of hacking off the rhino horn. Things that I would change about the way I lived my life would be the resources I used, in the sense not buying materials for my own purposes which require the substances from non-renewable resources or from any kind of animal. I could also start promoting a variety of TCM which doesn't require the use of endangered animals like Tai Chi, Qi Gong, acupuncture and massage.
Bibliography:
- tcphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uul3KOb0g0o
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGmVe7noHNg
- https://www.savetherhino.org/rangers/protecting-rangers-protecting-rhinos/
- https://www.namibian.com.na/168715/archive-read/Penalties-For-Poaching https://www.savetherhino.org/poaching-crisis/questions-over-chinas-involvement-in-the-illegal-rhino-horn-trade/
- https://medschool.ucsd.edu/som/fmph/research/cim/clinicalcare/Pages/About-Acupuncture.aspx
- https://nccih.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/chinesemed.htmhttp://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/rhinoceros-rhino-horn-use-fact-vs-fiction/1178/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=706&v=XbLAoUG3wmY
- https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/rhinohttp://time.com/4578166/traditional-chinese-medicine-tcm-conservation-animals-tiger-pangolin/
- http://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/animal-products-health-benefits-driving-species-to-extinction/
- https://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/06/world/beijing-bans-trade-in-rhino-and-tiger-parts.html
- https://www.savetherhino.org/rhino-info/poaching-stats/
- https://china.wcs.org/About-Us/History-Mission.aspx
- https://www.blackmambas.org/poaching.html
- http://www.gameranger.org/what-we-do/focus-areas1.html
