Soekarno-Hatta Customs Thwarts Egyptian Tourist's Wildlife Smuggling Attempt of Baby Siamang

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Soekarno-Hatta Customs Main Office detained a foreign national from Egypt with the initials GMA, 36, for alleged wildlife smuggling of the rare Sumatran siamang. The foreign tourist was apprehended at Soekarno-Hatta Airport on Thursday, August 29, 2024.

According to a Tempo source at Customs, the rare animal was a baby siamang from Sumatra. "Poor thing, it was separated from its mother. The baby primate cried last night, it only stopped after we gave it milk,” said the anonymous source. 

The baby primate was listed as a passenger's luggage. The Egyptian tourist, who speaks only Arabic, was about to leave for his home country by boarding an Emirates plane.

"The person concerned was still probed last night. Due to language barriers, an interpreter has been provided to assist during probing,” the source said.

Head of the Soekarno-Hatta Type C Customs and Excise Office, Gatot Sugeng Wibowo, stated that he would hold a press conference on the thwarting protected wildlife smuggling attempt today, August 30.  

Animal Smuggling via Soekarno-Hatta Airport

There have been several cases of wildlife smuggling attempts thwarted at Soekarno-Hatta Customs. Previously, a Bollywood producer and actor from India, Raama Mehra, 56, was detained by security officers at Soekarno-Hatta Airport and the Jakarta Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) in July 2024. Raama Mehra was suspected of smuggling two birds of paradise (Papuan cendrawasih birds) and one otter in a suitcase. These animals were disguised with various types of food, clothes, handbags, and children's toys. 

The three animals Raama Mehra attempted to smuggle are protected animals as per Conservation Law Number 5 of 1990, in conjunction with the Ministerial Regulation P.106 of 2018 concerning Protected Plant and Animal Species.

There are three protected types of otters, namely the coastal otter Lutra lutra, the hairy-nosed otter Lutra sumatrana, and the smooth-coatted otter Lutrogale perspicillata.

Meanwhile, the types of protected birds of paradise are the king bird of paradise Cicinnurus regius, Wilson’s bird of paradise Cicinnurus respublica, the superb bird of paradise Lophorina superba, the obi paradise-crow Lycocorax obiensis, and Lycocorax pyrrhopterus or paradise-crow.

Additionally, the greater bird of paradise Paradisaea apoda, the lesser bird of paradise Paradisaea minor, the red bird of paradise Paradisaea rubra, the King of Saxony bird of paradise Pteridophora alberti, and the twelve-wired bird of paradise Seleucidis melanoleucus are also protected.

According to Gatot, the animals smuggled by Mehra required a special permit to transport as they are listed in Appendix I and II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). 

"CITES is an international agreement that rules the trade of wild animals and plants to prevent overexploitation and protect animals from extinction," said Gatot.

AYU CIPTA

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