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14 smuggled orangutans arrive back home
Back home: Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar (third left) feeds one of 14 smuggled orangutans after the animals were transported in cages from Thailand, at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport in Jakarta on Thursday
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Back home: Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar (third left) feeds one of 14 smuggled orangutans after the animals were transported in cages from Thailand, at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport in Jakarta on Thursday. Most of the 14 orangutans were rescued six years ago on the Thai resort island of Phuket. (thejakartapost.com/Wienda Parwitasari) (third left) feeds one of 14 smuggled orangutans after the animals were transported in cages from Thailand, at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport in Jakarta on Thursday. Most of the 14 orangutans were rescued six years ago on the Thai resort island of Phuket. (thejakartapost.com/Wienda Parwitasari)
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span class="inline inline-center">Back home: Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar (third left) feeds one of 14 smuggled orangutans after the animals were transported in cages from Thailand, at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport in Jakarta on Thursday. Most of the 14 orangutans were rescued six years ago on the Thai resort island of Phuket. (thejakartapost.com/Wienda Parwitasari)
The repatriation of 14 orangutans, which had been smuggled into Thailand, ended in Jakarta on Wednesday, as the apes touched down on board an Indonesian Military C130 Hercules aircraft under the supervision of Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) personnel, a vet, paramedics, specialist animal keepers from both countries and a representative from the Indonesian Embassy in Thailand.
Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar, who was present at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport to welcome the party home, said that the 14 orangutans would go through a quarantine process at the internationally renowned Taman Safari Indonesia in Bogor.
Siti said the apes would go through rehabilitation in order to reacclimatize to their new environment. Once they have adjusted their behavior and restored their health, the apes will be returned to their natural habitat in Sumatra or Kalimantan, in accordance with their respective DNA results.
This is the third orangutan repatriation of its kind. Previous repatriations have taken place in 2006, with as many as 48 orangutans returning, and in 2007 with 4 orangutans.
The successful return of the orangutans has brought to light how illegal trading of endangered species continues to be an issue.
Commander of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Gatot Nurmantyo said that the government and military were honored to play a role in saving the ecosystem and the habitat of orangutans. Various attempts have been made to protect these animals from extinction, including a Government Regulation No. 7/1999, he added. (dan)(+)
