Arya News - Initial information revealed that the orangutan babies are aged between one and five years old and were found in healthy conditions.
BOGOR – The government is taking serious steps to return five orangutan babies found in a forest area in India after they received treatment.
Forestry Ministry public relations and foreign cooperation bureau head Ristiano Pribadi said that the ministry was seriously following up on the findings of five orangutans in Balasore district, Odisha state in India.
“The Indonesian government has coordinated with related authorities in India and at home to ensure the handling and verification of origin, and try to repatriate them to Indonesia,” he said on Thursday.
The local forestry agency found the orangutan babies on Sept. 8 in Bhogarai Block in Jaleswar range, which is near the border with the Indian state of West Bengal.
“Based on initial information, the orangutan babies are aged between one and five years old and were found in healthy conditions,” Ristianto said.
“Currently, all orangutans are placed and treated at the Nandankan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar.”
From initial physical and morphological observations, the five orangutans are believed to be from Sumatra.
However, Ristianto said the identification was still preliminary, and the confirmation of type and genetical origins would be done through DNA testing by an authorized scientific institution.
Orangutans are not native to India with their natural habitats only in Indonesian and Malaysia, especially on Sumatra and Kalimantan islands. Therefore, the presence of five orangutan babies in India led to strong suspicion that the protected animals were victims of the illegal animal trade, which involves cross-country networks.
Ristianto said the Forestry Ministry has acted quickly by communicating and coordinating with the Indian Management Authority of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the Indian Embassy in Jakarta, the Indonesian Embassy in New Delhi, the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) as a scientific authority and the Agriculture Ministry to support and expediate the repatriation process.
The coordination was taken to ensure that all processes are according to national laws and international mechanisms, including CITES.
The ministry also communicated with several conservation partners, which are experienced in rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing orangutans into the wild, such as the Leuser Ecosystem Foundation (YEL), the Indonesian Animal Network (JSI), the Center for Orangutan Protection (COP) and the Indonesian Orangutan Forum (Forina).
The partners have declared their readiness to support the Forestry Ministry in the repatriation process and in handling and rehabilitating the five orangutan babies once they are repatriated.
After repatriation, the orangutans will be handled according to prevailing conservation procedures, which include health checks, quarantine, genetical identification, behavior assessment and rehabilitation according to each orangutan’s condition and needs.
If the orangutans meet the requirements, they will be considered for rehabilitation and released into the wild in their natural habitat.
Safety and welfare for the five orangutan babies are the priority as well as ensuring their repatriation is conducted carefully, in a measured way and according to prevailing regulations.
The case shows that wildlife animal protection efforts cannot be done by one country alone. Wildlife animal trading and smuggling are transnational crimes that need strong international cooperation.
Indonesia has three separate orangutan species. On Sumatra Island there is the Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), which can be found in several places on Sumatra Island and the more limited Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis), which can only be found in Batang Toru, South Tapanuli regency and whose population has been devastated by recent flooding in the region. On Kalimantan Island, there is the Kalimantan orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus).
The orangutan is categorized as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List. They are legally protected from capture, harm or killing in both Malaysia and Indonesia.
Orangutans also are listed under Appendix I by CITES, which prohibits their unlicensed trade under international law.
All three species are also protected animals under Indonesian law.