No money, no 'arwana' research

No money, no 'arwana' research

JAYAPURA, Irian Jaya: Lack of funding has prevented the Irian
Jaya administration from launching a research program to confirm
reports that rivers in Merauke regency are inhabited by the
prized arwana fish, Antara said.

Kisto Mintardjo, the head of the Fisheries Office, said
reports from Merauke suggested that many rivers in the southern
part of Irian Jaya, particularly in Merauke, could potentially
have sizable populations of arwana.

He said that he hoped universities and research institutes
would one day take the trouble to look into the claim.

He said the administration would also welcome private
companies seeking to open breeding businesses for the fish, which
is a popular aquarium species.

The arwana is a protected species and trade in it is regulated
by the government. However, Kisto pointed out that Irian Jaya had
not yet used up the arwana trade quota allocated to it.