(MY) Slipping into extinction

[Guest guest]

Sunday October 2, 2005-The Star

 

Slipping into extinction

 

BY SHANTINI SUNTHARAJAH

 

CHAN Chee Yew (not his real name) gazed in revulsion at the photograph that

was being thrust in front of him.

 

It was a picture of a tiger hanging from a hook. The magnificent animal had

been reduced to a carcass that was being gutted and skinned and a man was

standing next to it, smiling.

 

The smiling man in the photo, the same one who was now showing it to a

horrified Chan, is the owner of a restaurant that serves “wild meat” just

outside Kuala Lumpur.

 

He had proudly declared to Chan that tiger meat was available upon request

and had lost no time in bringing out the photographs when the latter refused

to believe him.

 

The restaurant owner is just a single cog in a macabre machine that rolls

through the jungles, small towns and cities of Malaysia, leaving blood and

death in its wake.

 

This is the mechanism that powers the illegal wildlife trade in this

country.

 

Shepherd says the collection of animal trophies is big business in Malaysia

where there are many loopholes in the legislation.

It is a trade that is alive and well while Malaysia’s unique birds and

animals slip into extinction.

 

It is an incessant obliteration of nature, and it is nothing new to Chris

Shepherd, Programme Director of Traffic South-East Asia, a wildlife trade

monitoring network.

 

He has seen it all.

 

“I have been in the region (South-East Asia) for the past 14 years and I

have a fairly good idea of what’s going on,” says Shepherd who was

previously based in Sumatra.

 

Shepherd says that Malaysia plays three major roles in the grisly business

of illegal wildlife trafficking.

 

“Malaysia is a source country. A lot of wildlife is taken out of the wild

and is either used locally in restaurants or for medicinal stuff or sent to

zoos,” he says.

 

Secondly, dealers in the country think nothing of exporting protected native

animals to other countries, he says.

 

Malaysia’s third role is as a transit point.

 

“Turtles from Indonesia come into Malaysia and are exported to China.

Pangolins from Indonesia come into Malaysia and are exported,” he says.

 

Shepherd lists out a few main reasons why the trade exists in Malaysia.

 

“One is food; one is medicine... well, medicine and magic, we’ll put that in

the same group; one is luxury like ivory, turtle shell jewellery, skins,

furs and all of that stuff, and that includes trophies as well.”

 

Shepherd says that collecting animal trophies is big business here.

 

“People still like dead things on their walls.”

 

Another reason that fuels the illegal wildlife trade has to do with pet

stores. Many protected creatures that are native to Asia end up as someone’s

caged pet, thousands of kilometres away.

 

Shepherd states that Malaysian legislation has loopholes that need to be

plugged.

 

“A polar bear is protected here but they’ve left out turtles and tortoises.”

 

This is why, says Shepherd, Malaysia is the place to be for the Indian Star

Tortoise trade.

 

Star-shaped markings on their shells make them popular as pets but the

Indian Star Tortoise is listed on Appendix II of CITES (Convention on

International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna).

 

Appendix II lists species that need to be closely monitored because

extensive trade will very likely nudge them into Appendix I – the list that

specifies animals on the verge of extinction.

 

Shepherd relates how some pet store owners use this information as a selling

point.

 

“I walked into a pet shop once and the guy tried to sell a star tortoise by

saying that it was an Appendix II CITES species,” he says with a sardonic

smile.

 

As a member of CITES, Malaysia’s law needs to cover all animals that are

listed as protected, Shepherd says.

 

The Wildlife Protection Act is in line for an imminent amendment and

Shepherd hopes that these issues will be prioritised.

 

“We’re really hoping that the next amendment will cover all non-native CITES

species and sufficient penalties are given. If penalties are not a deterrent

then there’s no point in having penalties at all.”

 

Research on major cases in 2002, 2003 and 2004 involving wildlife smuggling

and illegal hunting in the country revealed that perpetrators were fined

between RM1,000 and RM8,000 and jail sentences ranged from just one day to

about 16 months.

 

The highest fine paid in those three years was by a smuggler from Kuala

Lumpur who was caught with182 pangolins and 13kgs of pangolin scales in

2004.

 

His crime cost him just RM7,500 and he never stepped into a jail cell.

 

Shepherd is reluctant to reveal the price tags attached to illegal wildlife,

either dead or alive. He explains that the trade is so lucrative that

previous disclosures have actually encouraged more people to get involved.

 

The programme director, who appeared disheartened while discussing Traffic’s

uphill struggle, visibly brightened at one particular point of the

conversation.

 

“We’re working very closely with MAS cargo, quarantine and customs. We’re

trying to train them to tell the difference between what is legal and

illegal,” he says.

 

As a major transit point, KLIA is the doorway for illegal wildlife dealers

who, over the years, have honed their skills at deceiving the authorities to

a fine art, he says.

 

For instance, smugglers keep legal and illegal turtles in the same crates

knowing enforcement agencies cannot identify the species.

 

“The officers at KLIA are the first ones to see the wildlife coming in and

the last ones to see it leave. They need to know,” he stresses.

 

_______________

Get an advanced look at the new version of MSN Messenger.

http://messenger.msn.com.my/Beta/Default.aspx