(MY) orang utan from the Johore zoo

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Rare orang utan returns home New Straits Times

14 Dec 2006

Sim Bak Heng

 

JOHOR BARU: International pressure is off Malaysia after a rare orang

utan was finally sent back to its country of origin — Sumatra.

 

The Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) remained

tight-lipped on the date and from which port the protected species was

sent back to Indonesia.

 

However, a Malacca Zoo spokesperson said the orang utan was returned

to Sumatra recently. It is learnt that the orang utan had been with

Johor Zoo for over 10 years.

 

The department was under pressure from Britain-based Nature Alert Ltd,

an organisation dedicated to promoting public awareness about

rainforests, which had accused Malaysia of delaying attempts to send

the orang utan back to Sumatra.

 

Johor Perhilitan director Abdul Razak Majid said the orang utan, which

was caught in the middle of a tussle between Johor Zoo and Johor

Perhilitan, was sent to Malacca Zoo for quarantine two months ago.

 

This was to ensure it was free from disease and was physically healthy

before being released to its natural habitat in the Sumatran forest,

he added.

 

" It was sent to Malacca Zoo as the zoo is owned by Perhilitan. We have

always wanted the Johor Zoo to surrender the animal and it finally

delivered the animal to the Malacca Zoo.

 

" It was not sent there as an exhibit for visitors but only for

quarantine purposes, " he said in an interview.

 

The department wanted Johor Zoo to surrender the orang utan so that it

could be released in the Sumatran forest but the zoo ignored the

request until two months ago.

 

The orang utan belongs to the Pongo pygmaeus abelii species, which is

classified as critically endangered under the Convention on

International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) 1973.

 

Under the convention, it is forbidden to trade in protected species,

and keepers of such animals are required to send them back to the

country of origin.

 

It is believed that the disputed orang utan is the only one left of a

batch of seven that was smuggled from the Sumatran forest to Johor. It

is howewer not known when or how they ended up here.

 

The other six are believed to have been sent back to Sumatra early this year.

 

Malaysia is among several Southeast Asian countries criticised by

international groups for alleged violation of the Cites convention, of

which it is a signatory.

 

Criticism was levelled at Malaysia after it was reported that orang

utans caught from their natural habitat were being held captive for

commercial purposes.