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Bringing home the orangutans
The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 11/24/2006 12:29 PM | Opinion
Few people would disagree that orangutans are in dire need of protection, or that they belong in their natural habitats of Kalimantan and Sumatra.
The repatriation of 48 orangutans from Thailand, however, raises a number of questions. To start with, a high percentage of returnees suffer from a variety of serious diseases. Few, if any, are able to survive on their own in their new habitats.
Besides the cost of repatriation and subsequent medical care, it makes little sense to transplant these unique creatures into an utterly unfamiliar environment in which they will have to undergo full-time retraining and rehabilitation for many years to come.
Realistic thinking should have prevailed over emotional nationalism and other considerations. The question may be asked whether some if not all of the orangutans would have been better off in Thailand.
The cost of ""bringing home the orangutans"" will amount to thousands of dollars for each returnee. The funds could have been better used for the protection and welfare of endangered orangutans in their original habitats.
Allowing orangutans to live out their remaining years under proper care in Thailand would have been in their best interest, and above all would have given zoo visitors the opportunity to get to know these unique and friendly creatures.
JOE SPARTZ
Jakarta
