Ebony smuggling go on in Sulawesi

Ebony smuggling go on in Sulawesi

PALU, Central Sulawesi: Central Selawesi Governor H.B.
Paliudju lamented yesterday that between 5,000 and 10,000 cubic
meters of ebony are smuggled out of the province each year.

"Most of the illegal ebony which gets out of the country is
smuggled to Sabah, East Malaysia," he said during a hearing with
the provincial legislative council yesterday.

The head of the province's forestry office, Kasman, said that
since 1989 the government has prohibited the logging of ebony
trees. Kasman believes the current batch being smuggled out is
from an old stockpile.

According to Antara, ebony has become a highly valuable
commodity with a cubic meter costing about US$20,000. (mds)