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The orangutan population decreases
Threatened species: A female orangutan (Pongo pygmaues pygmaeus) breastfeeds her baby at the Schmutzer Primate Center, Ragunan Zoo, South Jakarta
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Threatened species: A female orangutan (Pongo pygmaues pygmaeus) breastfeeds her baby at the Schmutzer Primate Center, Ragunan Zoo, South Jakarta. JP/RICKY YUDHISTIRA
Environmentalists report the population of Sumatran orangutans in the wild is only about 6.500, as their numbers are decreasing year by year due to deforestation for palm oil plantations, hunting and trafficking.
Your comments:
It is not a surprising statistic as the reasons are clearly stated: Loss of habitat, hunting and the illegal pet trade.
Unless the Indonesian government acts quickly and effectively to stop these practices - and severely punish transgressors - then it will continue to have the blood of the orangutan on its hands.
Maureen Ridley
With respect to Indonesia and the Indonesian people, it is so sad to see a once-beautiful part of the world be degraded by the palm oil industry and the illegal loggers. What was once a place one just had to see is now a mere shadow of its former glory.
And the saddest part is to see the mighty orangutan bought to its knees through no fault of its own. Ecotourism could turn the tables as eventually the timber will run out and the palm trees that blight Indonesians landscape can in time be replaced by something more beneficial to all.
We are only here on this earth for a short period of time and we have to stand before our maker and justify what we have done.
I am sure that if the government of Indonesia wanted to change this sad state of affairs, governments worldwide would join them, along with countless animal and environmental organizations so that Indonesia could bloom again.
It would be fantastic if Indonesia could lead by example, then maybe Africa could follow in protecting their gorillas, elephants etc.
Janelle Tuero
I urge the Indonesian government to put a moratorium on the clearing of forests for palm oil plantations. Without it, the orangutan has very little hope of survival.
Michelle Desilets
Tackling graft in bank fiasco -- Feb. 2, p. 3
The Attorney General's Office's seriousness in pursuing alleged graft in the central bank's Netherlands-based unit, Indonesische Overzeese Bank N.V. (Indover), has come under question after the Financial Reports Analysis Center (PPATK) denied having tracked the case. "We have not initiated any investigation into this case," PPATK chairman Yunus Husein told The Jakarta Post, but declined to elaborate.
Your comments:
Why haven't these criminals been executed? How many hundreds of billions of dollars do you need to steal from your own country before death is the appropriate sentence?
I say death for anything over US$1 billion, and a life sentence with no parole for anything over $10 million. That will act as a suitable deterrent! What do you think?
Bing
The Central Bank money not only went to lawmakers but also to law enforcers especially at the Attorney General's Office. Antasari wouldn't arrest his golf buddies.
La Bre
