Failed war on trade in endangered species

Failed war on trade in endangered species

Bambang Parlupi, Contributor, Jakarta

A bird vendor Ipung boasted to his buyers that he could provide
rare animals for them.

The East Javanese trader at Pondok Gede market in Bekasi
offered a royal cockatoo at Rp 1,250,000, a black-headed parrot
at Rp 500,000 and a yellow-crested cockatoo at Rp 750,000. He
quoted a snake by its length. A python is sold at Rp 135,000 per
meter.

"I don't dare display these animals here, but if anybody is
interested in any of them, I'll find it after a down payment of
at least 10 percent," said Ipung, now in his forties.

It turned out that the vendor who sells various singing birds
and cages in his kiosk has a side business -- illegal trade in
rare animals. The man even claimed he could provide the order
within two to three days.

"If necessary, we can deliver 'the goods' (the requested rare
animals) right to the buyer's house," said the man who would ask
for the telephone number and address of his prospective
customers.

Illegal trade in rare animals is conducted clandestinely and
even in the open, at bird markets, roadside kiosks, pet shops and
even by sidewalk vendors.

An investigation by PANTAU, a network for the monitoring of
wildlife trading in Indonesia, between October 2001 and March
2002 shows that Java is the center of protected animal trade

"The present trend shows the biggest number of people keeping
protected wildlife come from Java," said PANTAU coordinator,
Hartoyo Atmojo.

As a result, surrounding areas and those outside Java become
suppliers.

Last April and May, for instance, PANTAU members found a
number of protected animals like orangutans and proboscis monkeys
in a port in Semarang. They were taken by a wooden ship from
South and Central Kalimantan to be sold in Java. "Bent-beaked
birds (cockatoos and parrots), turtles and tarsiers usually come
from Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Papua by ship. These will later
be supplied to bird markets in Semarang, Surabaya and Jakarta,"
Hartoyo said.

The group also discovered that Bakaheuni and Merak ports were
the main gateways for the entry of protected wildlife from Medan,
Padang and Lampung to be sold on the black market. Smuggled
animals include various species of primates like black or gray
long-tailed monkeys, gibbons as well as various species of
singing birds. Tanjung Perak port in Surabaya and in Tanjung Mas
port in Semarang are also major gateways to transport rare
animals coming from the eastern part of Indonesia.

The monitoring operation conducted by 17 institutions under
PANTAU encountered 263 protected animals being traded in 14 major
cities across Indonesia.

Investigation into 24 species of traded animals in Medan,
Padang, Lampung, Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Denpasar
revealed the fact that primates rank first.

In terms of quantity, slow loris (Nyeticebus sp) constituted
the biggest number sold (95), followed by gray or black long-
tailed monkeys (Trachypithecus spp., 47 animals), pythons (Python
reticulatus, 35), snake eagle (Spilornis cheela, 20) and
surprisingly, tarsiers (Tarsius spp, 3).

"Many of these animals are kept by young people," said Hartoyo
recently who revealed the results of the investigation at Hotel
Mandarin here.

Animal trading flourishes due to the trend of keeping rare
animal as pets. The rarer an animal, the more attractive it is to
keep, thus, increasing the sale value of the animal.

Many people, unfortunately, are still not aware about rare
animals and the laws protecting them. In fact, rare animals are
protected under Law No. 5/1990 on conservation of biological
diversity and its ecosystem. Article 21 of the law clearly
stipulates that it is prohibited to capture, kill, keep, raise,
transport and trade protected animals. Violators of the law face
a penalty of five years in prison or a Rp 100 million fine.

PANTAU recommended the government take firm, concrete legal
measures against those who trade and raise protected animals. The
public was also encouraged to play an active role, by not
keeping, buying, or let alone selling rare animals.