TEMPO.CO, Jakarta-The Ministry for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs has foiled an attempt to smuggle whale sharks (Rhincodon typus), which is suspected to be destined for the People's Republic of China. According to the Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs, Susi Pudjiastuti, the whale sharks was found in a floating cage, owned by PT Air Biru Maluku in the Island of Kasumba, west of Seram in the province of Maluku on Thursday, May 26, 2016.
Susi said that the Ministry were alerted by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which reported their findings on Sunday, May 22, 2016. "We dispatched an investigative team as soon as we can, and found a whale shark in the floating cage owned by Hendrik - a Chinese citizen that resides in Singapore," said Susi at her office on Friday, May 27, 2016.
The investigative team - consisting of members of Ambon and Labuan Lombok's Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Monitoring Taskforce, as well as Maluku Police's Maritime Patrol - then found two whale sharks, each measuring at around 4-meters long. "This is a clear violation as whale shark is a protected species, which has been included in the endangered list by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature," said Susi.
Furthermore, continued Susi, the team found a recommendation from Maluku's Governor and the Natural Resources Conservation Agency for the export of the whale sharks as a decorative specimen. "PT Air Biru Maluku - which is based in Ambon - is a company that regularly exports exotic, living specimens," she said.
Currently, the case is being investigated by the police - and the person listed as the owner of PT Air Biru Maluku is also being interrogated by authorities, especially since one of the managers of the floating cages claim to be a member of the Taskforce 115 of the Minister for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs. "That said, the whale sharks will be released as soon as possible - but we will tag both sharks first before we release them into the wild," said Susi.
ANGELINA ANJAR SAWITRI