Actress Maggie Q Speaks Out for Rhinos

WildAid and its partners the African Wildlife Foundation and CHANGE kicked off a second year of the Stop Using Rhino Horn campaign in Vietnam with a Friday launch event, where diplomats and celebrity ambassadors came together to raise awareness of the rhino poaching crisis and to urge people against consuming rhino horn.

The event at Hanoi’s Sofitel Hotel also welcomed WildAid’s worldwide ambassador, Vietnamese-American actor Maggie Q, who arrived in Vietnam a day earlier to join the campaign in calling on the Vietnamese people to protect rhinos as well as other endangered wildlife.

Stop Using Rhino Horn is a three-year campaign from 2014 to 2016, initiated by WildAid, African Wildlife Foundation and CHANGE, and with the support of many partners, to reduce rhino horn demand in Vietnam — a response to the dramatic decline in the world’s rhino populations in recent years. The campaign has three primary goals: raise awareness of the rhino poaching crisis, support Vietnamese lawmakers in strengthening enforcement efforts, and measurably reduce demand for rhino horn in Vietnam.

Speaking at the event, Maggie Q said: “I am proud to be here as my mother is from Vietnam. It saddens me to see the news of the record number of rhinos killed so that their horns can be sold in Vietnam. I would like to help make people aware of the devastating impacts of this trade and persuade them to stop buying rhino horn. I think Vietnam can become a leader by taking strong action and showing the world we can end the trade in rhino horn.”

Maggie Q and WildAid ambassadors from Yao Ming to David Beckham are joined by a growing number of Vietnamese artists in calling for an end to rhino horn consumption, including singers Thanh Bui and Thu Minh; actor Hong Anh; musician Quoc Trung; MC/producer Anh Tuan; and Mrs. World Thu Huong. They’re among over 40 Vietnamese celebrities who actively participated in the campaign’s awareness-raising activities last year. With the support and cooperation from the government, business leaders, and media partners who contributed $1.6 million (USD) worth of donated media, the campaign reached millions of consumers through various media channels and also directly engaged over 10,000 students, teachers and parents.

Last month, campaign ambassadors and celebrity supporters joined “Nail Art for Rhino,” a creative campaign in partnership with Ogilvy & Mather to highlight the fact that rhino horn is made of keratin, just like fingernail.

In 2015, Stop Using Rhino Horn is expanding to a new level of intensity and scale, and will work with new partners to reach a wider audience. Targeting both current and potential users of rhino horn, the campaign’s messages reach CEOs, doctors and patients in hospitals, ceremonies and religious talks in Buddhist temples. Social media campaigns, special TV shows and comedy videos by the most popular producers, artists and comedians will help correct the public’s misconceptions about rhino horn’s medicinal properties.

These plans incorporate the results of a survey by AC Nielsen conducted in late 2014 on rhino horn awareness and attitudes. In the survey:

• 75% of respondents said they believed that rhino horn had health benefits.  
• 61% of respondents believed rhino horn could help treat or cure disease.
•  37.5% of respondents believed rhino horn helped in treating cancer.

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The survey also found that 69% of people interviewed did not know that rhinos have to be killed in order to obtain the horn. Once it was explained that rhino horn is made of keratin, that rhinos are killed to obtain the horn and that rhinos may go extinct if people keep purchasing rhino horn, nearly all respondents claimed they would not buy it.

“It is a difficult thing to break through the wall of misinformation and myth surrounding rhino horn which has calcified over generations,” said African Wildlife Foundation CEO Dr. Patrick Bergin. “Nevertheless, it is something we must do within the next couple of years if we are to stave off extinction for our rhinos. No doubt our message will be heard when we have ambassadors such as Maggie Q lending their voices to the cause.”

In her remarks at the press conference, Claire A. Pierangelo, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy, emphasized the importance of taking action now to protect the natural world for the next generation: “With a shared vision, Vietnam and the United States are seizing new opportunities and momentum to take stronger action against wildlife crime.  The United States is strengthening the skills of Vietnam’s law enforcement officers while forging partnerships to reduce demand of illegal wildlife products.”

In addition to raising awareness, AWF's partner WildAid is also commiting to assisting the Vietnamese government in strengthening their law enforcement efforts. The campaign will provide professionally trained detector dogs to Vietnam Customs in a joint partnership between WildAid, Working Dogs for Conservation (WDFC) and Vietnam Customs. Currently, two dogs are being trained in the US to be able to detect several different wildlife scents, including rhino horn, ivory, tiger products and pangolin products, at Hai Phong Seaport in September. Trainers from WDFC will also train the Customs’ handlers. Mr. Le Duc Binh from the Vietnam Customs spoke at the press conference today, showing their appreciation for the support and commitment to strengthen their enforcement efforts to help reduce illegal wildlife trafficking.

“WildAid believes that raising awareness and changing people’s behavior can end the trade in endangered wildlife, but only with effective law enforcement. We also hope that the Government of Vietnam will consider destroying its rhino horn stockpile to demonstrate its commitment to addressing the rhino horn trade,” said WildAid Managing Director John Baker. “WildAid commends the Government of Vietnam on its recent offer to host the International Wildlife Trade conference in 2016 and looks forward to assisting in achieving its goal of ending the illegal wildlife trade.”

* Stop Using Rhino Horn Campaign 2015 is thankful to the support from media partners: VTV, VTC, An Vien TV, Star Media, Chicilon Media, FBNC, YanTV, TVShopping, Dat Viet Newspaper, Nhip cau Dau Tu, Dep, The Thao Van hoa Dan ong, Outlook, Doanh nhan, Cam nang Mua sam, Phong cach Doanh nhan, GaFin, XoneFM, Nam Hương Communications Company, Ogilvy & Mather, T&A Ogilvy, POPs Vietnam, tinmoitruong.vn, tttd.vn, hotnow.vn. The press conference was sponsored by Sofitel Plaza Hanoi Hotel and DHA company.