Failed war on trade in endangered species

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Failed war on trade in endangered species

JAKARTA POST

08-27-2002

Bambang Parlupi

 

A bird vendor Ipung boasted to his buyers that he could provide rare animals

for them. The East Javanese trader at Pondok Gede market in Bekasi offered a

royal cockatoo at Rp 1,250,000, a black-headed parrot at Rp 500,000 and a

yellow-crested cockatoo at Rp 750,000. He quoted a snake by its length. A

python is sold at Rp 135,000 per meter. " I don't dare display these animals

here, but if anybody is interested in any of them, I'll find it after a down

payment of at least 10 percent, " said Ipung, now in his forties. It turned

out that the vendor who sells various singing birds and cages in his kiosk

has a side business -- illegal trade in rare animals. The man even claimed

he could provide the order within two to three days.

 

" If necessary, we can deliver 'the goods' (the requested rare animals) right

to the buyer's house, " said the man who would ask for the telephone number

and address of his prospective customers. Illegal trade in rare animals is

conducted clandestinely and even in the open, at bird markets, roadside

kiosks, pet shops and even by sidewalk vendors. An investigation by PANTAU,

a network for the monitoring of wildlife trading in Indonesia, between

October 2001 and March 2002 shows that Java is the center of protected

animal trade " The present trend shows the biggest number of people keeping

protected wildlife come from Java, " said PANTAU coordinator, Hartoyo Atmojo.

As a result, surrounding areas and those outside Java become suppliers. Last

April and May, for instance, PANTAU members found a number of protected

animals like orangutans and proboscis monkeys in a port in Semarang.

 

They were taken by a wooden ship from South and Central Kalimantan to be

sold in Java. " Bent-beaked birds (cockatoos and parrots), turtles and

tarsiers usually come from Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Papua by ship. These

will later be supplied to bird markets in Semarang, Surabaya and Jakarta, "

Hartoyo said. The group also discovered that Bakaheuni and Merak ports were

the main gateways for the entry of protected wildlife from Medan, Padang and

Lampung to be sold on the black market. Smuggled animals include various

species of primates like black or gray long-tailed monkeys, gibbons as well

as various species of singing birds. Tanjung Perak port in Surabaya and in

Tanjung Mas port in Semarang are also major gateways to transport rare

animals coming from the eastern part of Indonesia. The monitoring operation

conducted by 17 institutions under PANTAU encountered 263 protected animals

being traded in 14 major cities across Indonesia. Investigation into 24

species of traded animals in Medan, Padang, Lampung, Jakarta, Bandung,

Yogyakarta and Denpasar revealed the fact that primates rank first. In terms

of quantity, slow loris (Nyeticebus sp) constituted the biggest number sold

(95), followed by gray or black long-tailed monkeys (Trachypithecus spp., 47

animals), pythons (Python reticulatus, 35), snake eagle (Spilornis cheela,

20) and surprisingly, tarsiers (Tarsius spp, 3).

 

" Many of these animals are kept by young people, " said Hartoyo recently who

revealed the results of the investigation at Hotel Mandarin here. Animal

trading flourishes due to the trend of keeping rare animal as pets. The

rarer an animal, the more attractive it is to keep, thus, increasing the

sale value of the animal. Many people, unfortunately, are still not aware

about rare animals and the laws protecting them. In fact, rare animals are

protected under Law No. 5/1990 on conservation of biological diversity and

its ecosystem. Article 21 of the law clearly stipulates that it is

prohibited to capture, kill, keep, raise, transport and trade protected

animals. Violators of the law face a penalty of five years in prison or a Rp

100 million fine.

 

PANTAU recommended the government take firm, concrete legal measures against

those who trade and raise protected animals. The public was also encouraged

to play an active role, by not keeping, buying, or let alone selling rare

animals.