Eleven orangutans handed over

SAMARINDA, East Kalimantan: The Wanariset Samboja orangutan rehabilitation center here has become the new home of 11 orangutans from Bali, Antara reported.

Bali's Conservation and Natural Resources Agency recently confiscated 14 orangutans from their owners, and 11 of the orangutans were sent to Wanariset Samboja, the center's head, Adi Susilo, said here on Monday.

It is illegal to own orangutans in Indonesia because the apes are threatened with extinction due to illegal hunting.

With 11 new members, the center now has 199 orangutans.

"The orangutans must follow a rehabilitation program at the center for three-and-a-half years before they are returned to the jungle," Susilo said.

He said the center spent Rp 8.5 million for each orangutan's three-and-a-half-year stay.

With 199 orangutans, Wanariset Samboja needs some Rp 1.7 billion to care for the apes, he said, adding that the forestry ministry and several foreign societies dedicated to the protection of the orangutan have been funding the center.

Samboja has not encountered any difficulty in funding its activities, Susilo said.

"However, we face difficulties in finding sites for the program because the Sungai Wein protected forest in Balikpapan district and the forest near Mt Meratus in Pasir district are no longer considered proper for them," he said.

Susilo said the center is seeking another forest not far from Mt Meratus.