For over 15 years, Vietnam’s government, together with NGOs, have been fighting to end the cruel practice of bear farming in Vietnam. Collective efforts have resulted in a 93% reduction in the number of bile bears in Vietnam, from 4,300 bears recorded in 2005 to 257 bears on farms by November 2022. Many bear owners across the country have voluntarily given up their bears thanks to great efforts made by local authorities. 

However, while significant progress has been made across the country, Hanoi remains the country’s #1 bear farming hotspot, with 140 bears on 25 farms accounting for 54% of the total bile bears in Vietnam! Of the 140 bears being kept at 25 Hanoi farms, 131 bears are being kept on 20 farms in Phuc Tho district alone! (All figures refer to end of November 2022).

Instead of leading the nation in efforts to end bear farming in Vietnam, Hanoi – Vietnam’s capital city – is way behind the rest of the country. While many other provinces have been working hard to end bear farming, Hanoi province has shown little improvements in efforts to deal with this industry, reflecting poorly upon overall efforts by the government to phase out bear farming throughout the rest of the country. Hanoi is the country’s capital, and therefore should be setting an example for other provinces to follow, and not create an embarrassment for Vietnam on the global stage.

It falls to the Hanoi government to instruct Hanoi authorities and local governments to step up and end bear farming in their jurisdictions, as well as to ensure that a precedent of zero tolerance is set for the rest of the country in dealing with the bear farming situation.

To end bear farming for the bile trade in Vietnam, we must end bear farming in Hanoi! Please sign our petition addressed to the Hanoi Government and help Hanoi’s bile bears!

FOUR PAWS provides a species-appropriate forever home for former bile bears at BEAR SANCTUARY Ninh Binh. Watch this video below to see how we can give these bears a life they deserve.