Suspected monkey traders questioned

BANDAR LAMPUNG: Two suspected monkey traders, identified by the initials of HER and AMN, were questioned by a team from NGO Natural Conservation Agency here on Thursday.

They were questioned following an investigation conducted by the Lampung Alas Foundation and the Wild Animal Conservation Body, which concluded that the illegal trading of monkeys was rampant in Bandar Lampung.

Worse yet, some restaurants in the city sold monkey meat to their customers.

When questioned, HER, a resident of Jl. K.H. Ahmad Dahlan in Bandar Lampung, admitted that he got a license for the monkey trade from the Lampung Forestry Agency. But he said that the business, which he ran with his father Baba Lie, was only concerned with the domestication of the monkeys in PT Prestasi Fauna.

"We also export them through PT Wanara Satwaloka. So we don't sell them to restaurants," HER said.

He added that they usually bought the monkeys from hunters at the price of Rp 10,000 (US$1) per monkey and then sold them for Rp 20,000. "I'm not hunting them or killing them," he said.

But AMN, a resident of Jl. Yos Sudarso in Bandar Lampung, admitted that during the last two years he had killed up to 60 monkeys. "We bought them from hunters in Menggala, Tulangbawang regency. We only slaughtered them when someone wanted to buy them," he said.

AMN, who also traded in wild pigs, said that he himself also consumed monkey meat.

The two conservation agencies said that they were considering taking legal actions against the two suspects. --JP