Taiping Four Gorillas' return delayed

[Guest guest]

We heard that Malaysia had demanded from South

Africa a statement that South Africa would not

ask the Malaysians to pay for the gorillas'

upkeep during their years in Pretoria and that

South Africa had not responded to the demand, by

accident or design? To ask for the costs of

upkeep is unthinkable as the gorillas drew millions to Pretoria Zoo. Shirley

 

JOHANNESBURG

Govt delays gorillas' flight home

 

Mon, 11 Dec 2006

 

The government has delayed the return of the Taiping Four gorillas to

Cameroon because of red-tape ­ just two days before their flight.

While everyone involved had agreed to their relocation, South Africa was

required to officially indicate its consent, the Department of Science and

Technology said on Monday.

 

" In the absence of this, the Malaysian authorities have not yet been in a

position to action Cameroon's request to return

the animals to that country, " it

said in a statement.

 

The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW),

which is funding the relocation, said it was

" desperately disappointed " at the postponement.

 

" This has come as a complete bolt from the blue, " said spokesperson

Christina Pretorius.

IFAW had been working on the relocation with the National Zoological Gardens

in Pretoria (Pretoria zoo) and the Pandrillus Foundation, which manages the

sanctuary in Cameroon to which the animals will be sent.

 

They had developed a close cooperation in the last few weeks to ensure the

smooth transition of the animals to their new home, she said.

 

" Keepers from Limbe have worked alongside their (Pretoria zoo) colleagues

for the last three weeks, and staff from the Pretoria Zoo were to travel with

the gorillas to Cameroon to ensure them safely settled. "

 

While IFAW understood the position the government found itself in, Pretorius

pointed out that all logistics had been in place for the relocation on

Wednesday. " Hopefully the delay is not an extended one, " she said.

 

The western lowland gorillas were sent to the Pretoria zoo in 2004 at the

request of Malaysia, which confiscated them in

2002 after discovering they had

been illegally imported to its Taiping zoo from Nigeria.

 

Cameroon asked that the animals ­ three females and a male known as Izan,

Abbey, Tinu and Oyin, and aged between five and eight ­ be returned to their

country of origin. Malaysia informed South

African officials of its decision to transfer the

gorillas in July. They were to have flown from OR

Tambo International Airport on a scheduled

Kenya Airways flight on Wednesday, said Pretorius.

 

They would have flown via Nairobi to Douala, in Cameroon, and been taken

from there, by road, to the Limbe Wildlife Centre ­ a specialist priimate

rehabilitation sanctuary.

 

The postponement was announced by Science and Technology Deputy Minister

Derek Hanekom.

 

The department envisaged that the matter would be resolved " in the coming

weeks " . Reaffirming its commitment to ensuring

the animals' safe return, it pledged

to expedite the process as far as possible.

 

A move before February will fall outside Cameroon's rainy season and will

bring to an end years of dispute over the gorillas' return ­ lobbied for by,

among others, the Born Free Foundation, the Pan

African Sanctuary Alliance, the

International Primate Protection League, and the Last Great Ape

Organisation.

 

Other groups have argued that the animals will be safer in South Africa,

where they will be protected from poachers who might hunt them for meat.

 

The Pretoria zoo accommodated them in specially-constructed habitats.

http://iafrica.com/news/sa/518896.htm