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Tiger, tiger:
future not so bright
TRAFFIC
investigators found the parts of an estimated 23 tigers for sale
©
Julia Ng / TRAFFIC Southeast Asia
Cambridge, UK; Gland, Switzerland—Laws
protecting the critically endangered Sumatran Tiger have failed to prevent tiger
body parts being offered on open sale in Indonesia, according to a TRAFFIC
report launched today.
Tiger body parts, including
canine teeth, claws, skin pieces, whiskers and bones, were on sale in 10 percent
of the 326 retail outlets surveyed during 2006 in 28 cities and towns across
Sumatra. Outlets included goldsmiths, souvenir and traditional Chinese medicine
shops, and shops selling antique and precious stones.
The survey conservatively
estimates that 23 tigers were killed to supply the products seen, based on the
number of canine teeth on sale.
“This is down from an estimate
of 52 killed per year in 1999–2002”, said Julia Ng, Programme Officer with
TRAFFIC Southeast Asia and lead author on The Tiger Trade Revisited in Sumatra,
Indonesia. “Sadly, the decline in availability appears to be due to the
dwindling number of tigers left in the wild”.
All of TRAFFIC’s surveys have
indicated that Medan, the capital of North Sumatra province, and Pancur Batu, a
smaller town situated about 15 km away, are the main hubs for the trade of tiger
parts.
Despite TRAFFIC providing
authorities with details of traders involved, apart from awareness-raising
activities, it is not clear whether any serious enforcement action has been
taken.
“Successive surveys continue to
show that Sumatran Tigers are being sold body part by body part into extinction”,
said Dr Susan Lieberman, Director of WWF International’s Species Programme.
“This is an enforcement crisis.
If Indonesian authorities need enforcement help from the international community
they should ask for it. If not, they should demonstrate they are taking
enforcement seriously”.
The report recommends that
resources and effort should concentrate on effective enforcement to combat the
trade by arresting dealers and suppliers. Trade hotspots should be continually
monitored and all intelligence be passed to the enforcement authorities for
action. Those found guilty of trading in tigers and other protected wildlife
should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
“...Sumatran tigers are being
sold body part by body part into extinction...this is an enforcement crisis”,
Dr Susan Lieberman, Director of WWF International’s Species Programme
“We have to deal with the
trade. Currently we are facing many other crucial problems which, unfortunately,
are causing the decline of Sumatran Tiger populations” explained Dr Tonny
Soehartono, Director for Biodiversity Conservation, Ministry of Forestry of
Republic of Indonesia.
“We have been struggling with
the issues of land use changes, habitat fragmentation, human–tiger conflicts
and poverty in Sumatra. Land use changes and habitat fragmentation are driving
the tiger closer to humans and thus creating human–tiger conflicts”.
As a recent show of commitment,
the President of the Republic of Indonesia launched the Conservation Strategy
and Action Plan of Sumatran Tiger 2007–2017 during the 2007 Climate Change
Convention in Bali.
Sumatra's remaining few tigers
are also under threat from rampant deforestation by the pulp and paper and palm
oil industries. The combined threats of habitat loss and illegal trade—unless
tackled immediately—will be the death knell for Indonesian tigers.
“The Sumatran Tiger is already
listed as Critically Endangered on IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species, the
highest category of threat before extinction in the wild,” said Jane Smart,
Head of IUCN’s Species Programme. “We cannot afford to lose any more of
these magnificent creatures”.
“The Sumatran Tiger population
is estimated to be fewer than 400 to 500 individuals. It doesn’t take a
mathematician to work out that the Sumatran Tiger will disappear like the Javan
and Bali tigers if the poaching and trade continues” Julia Ng adds.
As Indonesia currently chairs the
ASEAN-Wildlife Enforcement Network, TRAFFIC National Co-ordinator Dr Ani
Mardiastuti suggested the country “demonstrate leadership to other ASEAN
countries by taking action against illegal trade, including in tiger parts.”
The latest report was launched
the day after India's National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) announced an
official estimate of 1,411 tigers currently surviving in the wild in India; more
than 50 percent down from the previous census estimate of 3,642 tigers in
2001-02.
Contacts
Richard Thomas, Communications
Co-ordinator, TRAFFIC, t + 44 1223 279068, m + 44 77434 82960, email
richard.thomas@traffic.org
Jan Vertefeuille, Communications Manager, WWF Asian Elephant, Rhino and Tiger
Programmes, t +1 202 489 2889, email janv@wwfus.org
Sarah Halls, Media Relations Officer, IUCN, Tel: +41 22 999 0127; Mobile: +41 79
528 3486; Email: sarah.halls@iucn.org
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