Good Faith Gorillas

[Guest guest]

To all on these lists:

 

So far every news article I've seen about the Taiping 4 gorilla case quotes the

Malaysian position that they operated on " good faith " and that they were somehow

" duped " by the Nigerians into believing these 4 gorillas were legitimately

" captive born " - a requirement for the issuance of their CITES permit which

accompanied them on their journey from Nigeria to South Africa to Malaysia

earlier this year.

 

Sources who first alerted me to something suspicious, indicate that staff from

the Taiping Zoo visited Ibadan Zoo in Nigeria at least once, if not more than

once, as part of their so-called " routine zoo animal exchange " program

preparations. If true, those Taiping staff might have wondered how a zoo with

one elderly lone female gorilla was going to produce 4 offspring between 2 and 4

years of age, in time for their " animal exchange. "

 

Indeed, even if no one from Taiping ever visited Nigeria, some basic questions

might have been posed, like " when were the babies born? who were their parents?

and where were they born? " - All questions that should be on CITES permits as

back up proof animals are indeed captive born.

 

With some animals, it might be confusing, but gorillas are very high profile and

their status in captivity is well documented and well known around the world. A

check with anyone in the zoo community, could and would have alerted authorities

that something wasn't right with those CITES permits showing 4 captive born

babies coming from Nigeria - indeed from virtually any place in Africa, where

captive gorilla births are rare and confined to only 1 or 2 gorilla

sanctuary/release sites.

 

Taiping appealed for gorillas on the internet (on the SEAZA website) and to

other zoos for some time before this Nigeria " deal " was struck. They made no

secret that they were trying to secure gorillas, and just like so many zoos

around the world, they were most likely frustrated by the lack of available

gorillas - especially for a breeding group like they sought. Surely, all these

attempts at securing gorillas legally should have made them wonder at their

" good luck " to find 3 females and 1 male baby all of a sudden available from a

zoo with one elderly gorilla in Nigeria.

 

Recently six mountain gorillas in Rwanda/Congo were slaughtered and it appears

word is out that someone - an individual, a zoo, an animal dealer???? - is

trying to get more baby gorillas out of Africa, perhaps inspired by Taiping's

apparent " ease " in procuring gorillas. Until and unless the perpetrators of

these CRIMES regarding mountain gorillas are found and prosecuted, the future of

gorillas in the wild looks dimmer and dimmer.

 

The Nigeria-Malaysia gorilla deal is also a serious CRIME and while some people

may have been duped and operated in good faith, it's clear to me and many others

that there are guilty parties responsible for the deaths of countless gorillas

who died so that the Taiping 4 could end up in Malaysia. This includes people

in Malaysia as well as Nigeria.

 

The fact that no one in Malaysia seems to understand the seriousness of this

crime and the damage it's doing to their country's reputation has me very

concerned. Chairman Ho's bewilderment on why those 4 gorillas shouldn't stay in

Taiping underscores a basic lack of understanding on the seriousness of the

crime and all its implications: Countless gorillas suffered and died so those 4

babies could get to Taiping, and the precedent and message such a fraud sends to

others desperate to have gorillas in their midst, will spell disaster for more

wild gorillas, unless this crime is prosecuted vigorously.

 

CITES and the Zoo world (including WAZA) are to be commended for taking this

case seriously and hopefully the right decision (to send these 4 gorillas back

to their most likely country of origin, Cameroon, where an excellent facility

stands ready to accept them) will be made and implemented soon.

 

Jane Dewar

Founder Gorilla Haven

 

 

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2002/11/7/nation/tpibuy & sec=nation

Thursday, November 07, 2002

Exco man: Zoo bought gorillas in good faith

 

TAIPING: The Taiping Municipal Council, which manages the Taiping Zoo, has not

committed any wrong in acquiring the four baby go-rillas from Nigeria, said

state Science, Environment, Health and Technology Committee chairman Datuk Ho

Cheng Wang.

 

He said the council was a bona fide purchaser and the transaction was done in

good faith.

 

" Nigeria and Malaysia are Commonwealth countries which practise the Common Law

and everyone, including non-governmental organisations, should respect this, "

said Ho.

 

He was commenting on calls by some non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to

prosecute those responsible for bringing in the baby gorillas and to return the

animals to a suitable facility which had the necessary expertise to look after

them.

 

The issue drew criticisms from NGOs which said that the acquisition of the

animals in January contravened the Convention of International Trade in

Endangered Species of which Malaysia was a signatory.

 

Ho said had the council known that the gorillas were illegally sent here, it

would not have approved it.

 

" We don't know how or what the other party (Nigeria) did to enable the animals

to be brought here but we bought the animals in good faith, " said Ho.

 

The council, he added, had acquired the necessary approvals from the relevant

authorities here, including the Wildlife and National Parks Department before

the transaction was finalised.

 

Ho said he could not understand why some NGOs were against Taiping Zoo's move

to have the animals here.

 

" We plan to breed them, not be cruel to them, " he said, adding that he had

full confidence the zoo's staff could look after the animals, based on their

past success in breeding other animals.

 

Since their arrival, the baby gorillas had been under quarantine to enable

them to adjust to the zoo's environment and a special enclosure, covered with

lush vegetation, has also been provided for them.