Thailand carries out tests on orangutans

JAKARTA: Thailand said on Tuesday that it was still carrying out DNA tests on dozens of orangutans in Bangkok to determine whether or not they were from Indonesia, as alleged by animal activists.

The Thai embassy in Jakarta said that, according to provisions in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), DNA tests had to be performed to determine the animals' country of origin.

"As Indonesia and Thailand are both parties to CITES, it should be a common responsibility between origin and destination countries to solve this problem," it said in a statement.

Animal activists have staged protests in front of the embassy demanding the repatriation of orangutans allegedly smuggled out from Indonesia to Thailand, where they were undergoing boxing training. -- JP