Chen Yi lists --LONG!

[Greg Ruckert]

Certainly no intention to put you in the spotlight, Ellen.  Yours was not
the name that came to mind. My apologies

>Since Greg raises the question rather directly, let me state that I have
>NEVER imported anything from Kaichen/Chen Yi, nor have I gone in on anyone
>else's order.  The only arisaemas I've imported (candidissimum, fargesii)
>came from the Czech Republic, where they have been garden-grown for a
>long, long time.

>The other thing I want to clarify is that exporting wild-collected plants,
>and deliberately mislabelling CITES-protected species to avoid regulation,
>are two different things.  I may happen not to like either, but, in
>general, only the second is illegal.  If we're going to assign
>culpability, of course the buyer must share it with the seller; but while
>the buyer I spoke to was, in fact, uninformed on the subject (until too
>late) it cannot be assumed that the daughter of one of China's leading
>orchid experts isn't aware of CITES regulations - especially if she really
>is attaching different names to CITES-protected plants, names with which,
>one has to assume, the buyers are supplied (hence the admonition to delete
>relevant e-mail from one's files).

One of the difficulties here is the standards by which people are judged.
In Australia ignorance of the law is no defence in a court of law and the
importer is the guilty party.  But why should we judge others by our
standards.  As Duncan so clearly pointed out life itself is a struggle for
many of the Chinese.  Would you protect an Arisaema or plant food for your
family.  I know the decision that is taken in Australia, we have raped as
high a percentage of our country as any one else.  Salvage operations have
my unqualified support.  If I was Chinese, had a product that was in heavy
demand from overseas, then I would probably supply.  After all we in the
ADVANCED countries are supposed to know it all.

What should be happening here is we judge ourselves by our standards, but
judge the suppliers by their standards.

Greg Ruckert
Australian Areae Collection
http://www.ezi-learn.com.au/areae/default.html