ST News: $1,000 reward for info on illegally kept tiger and bear

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Nov 9, 2004

$1,000 reward for info on illegally kept tiger and bear

by Chang Ai-lien<br> Science Correspondent

 

 

 

AN ANIMAL rights group has appealed for information in the hunt for a tiger and

a Malayan sun bear it believes are being kept illegally as pets here.

 

The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) yesterday offered a

reward of $1,000 for information leading to the seizure of the animals, which

are both endangered species protected under international conventions.

 

Acres president Louis Ng said that over the past year, several people have

reported a tiger being kept in a house in Sixth Avenue.

 

Two weeks ago, a member of the public approached Acres to report a sun bear

being kept in a house in Mandai.

 

No specific addresses were given in either case.

 

Last week, Acres launched a hotline service for the public to pass on

information connected with the illegal wildlife trade. It has also been

conducting road shows over the past two weeks to promote awareness of the issue.

 

More than 10 people have called the group's Wildlife Crime Hotline since it was

launched on Nov 3, said Mr Ng, reporting people who had rare birds and reptiles

as pets.

 

The group works with the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) to track down

illegal pets, he said.

 

Ms Lye Fong Keng, head of AVA's Wildlife Regulatory Branch, said: 'We view the

illegal keeping of dangerous wild animals such as the tiger and sun bear

seriously. These wild animals may pose a danger to their owners, neighbours and

the public and they may attack and kill humans even without provocation.'

 

No one has ever been caught for keeping tigers here illegally, but in 1993 a

woman was prosecuted for having a sun bear and a monkey in a Pasir Panjang

house. She was fined $2,000 and the animals were confiscated.

 

Singapore is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered

Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites), which aims to protect 30,000 animals

and plants, some of which face extinction because of commercial trade.

 

Both tigers and sun bears are protected under Cites.

 

Under the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act, anyone possessing an

illegally imported Cites-listed specimen may be fined up to $5,000 and jailed

for a year.

 

People keeping a wild animal without an AVA licence can be fined a maximum of

$1,000 an animal, under the Wild Animals and Birds Act.

 

Apart from the Acres' 24-hour hotline on 9783-7782, people can also call AVA on

6227-0670.

IP Address:210.24.243.3