Sumatran tigers may be gone from the wild in two years<\/p>\n
By Marjeni Rokcalva<\/p>\n
PADANG, West Sumatra (AFP): At least 14 rare Sumatran tigers
\nhave been slaughtered by poachers in the past three months, and
\nthe species faced extinction within two years, Indonesian
\nenvironmentalists have warned.<\/p>\n
Only about 400 of the tigers remained and they were being
\ntargeted by rampant hunters, said Rahmadi, the head of the
\nIndonesian Wildlife Forum (Walhi) chapter in Padang.<\/p>\n
At least 50 of the tigers are known to have been killed in the
\npast decade, he told AFP, adding there was a growing blackmarket
\ndemand for the skin and meat.<\/p>\n
Most of the killings had taken place at the Kerinci Seblat
\nnational park -- a vast protected wildlife area of 1.3 million
\nhectares covering Jambi, Bengkulu, Riau and West Sumatra
\nprovinces.<\/p>\n
Walhi had gathered evidence to show 14 Sumatran tigers were
\neither poisoned or shot by poachers between August and November
\nand then sold on the black market for between five million and
\n7.5 million rupiah ($740 to $1,111).<\/p>\n
"If there is no serious effort to stop the killings ... this
\nanimal will vanish in two years," Rahmadi said.<\/p>\n
He charged, without producing evidence that information from
\nhis sources pointed to "personnel from the Indonesian military"
\ntaking part in the illegal trade as were police in the Sarolangun
\nBangko district in Jambi province.<\/p>\n
"This has been going on for a long time, and their (the
\npolice) modus operandi is to purchase the whole skin of the
\ntiger ... and the animal's body parts such as the skull and
\nbones," Rahmadi said.<\/p>\n
Data compiled by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
\nindicated that apart from hunting being a threat to the Sumatran
\ntigers, their habitat was also shrinking which contributed to
\ntheir decreasing numbers.<\/p>\n
A WWF report showed that the tigers have began roaming on the
\nperimeter of their protected areas, such as Muko-Muko in
\nBengkulu, Kerinci in Jambi and Pesisir Selatan in West Sumatra --
\nall of which are easily accessible to poachers.<\/p>\n
An official of the West Sumatra chapter of the state Natural
\nResources Conservation Unit, Djoko Suhardjo, had confirmed that
\npoachers were using firearms to hunt the tigers, Rahmadi said.<\/p>\n
He said the unit's park rangers had found bullet holes in
\ncarcasses.<\/p>\n
In Asia and increasingly in the West the body parts of
\nSumatran tigers, the "panthers tigris sumatrae", are said to have
\nhealing powers and are also prized as male vertility stimulants.
\nThere is also a high demand for their skins.<\/p>",
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