Orangutan proves you can go home

Orangutan proves you can go home

MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: The Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA) in South Sulawesi transported on Thursday a 10- year-old male orangutan to East Kalimantan, where it will be released into the wild.

The orangutan had been confiscated from a man who kept the protected animal as a pet for years.

The orangutan, named Rico, was flown to the East Kalimantan town of Balikpapan, where it will receive training before being released back into its natural habitat.

In Makassar, the staff of the Anggrek Delia Hotel were sad to see Rico leave for the airport. The animal had been in the custody of the hotel's owner while the Makassar District Court ruled on Rico's status.

The BKSDA filed a complaint against a local resident, Ilham, who was keeping the orangutan without the necessary permits. The court found in favor of BKSDA, ruling that Rico be returned to the forest in East Kalimantan.

Ilham received a six-month suspended jail sentence for illegal possession of a protected species.

Wahyudin, a BKSDA official who accompanied Rico to Balipapan, said the orangutan would receive special training to allow it to be reintroduced to its natural habitat. --JP