Big cat lovers: Malaysian youths act for tigers

Allan Koay, The Star 1 Jun 09;

Concerned about the decreasing number of tigers, a group of youths went to the ground to persuade the average Malaysian to act before it’s too late.

FOUR young people are sitting in front of me, looking a little bit nervous, perhaps because this is their first press interview. They’re obviously a little shy, but once they start talking about wildlife conservation and the environment, they’re definitely not low on confidence and opinion.

Seventeen-year-olds Wong Tze Cheng, Khaw Hwan Juet and Lee Zi Ying, together with Michelle Yap Mun Yee, 18, are A-Level students at Taylor’s University College, and part of a group of 20 students who help with the Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (Mycat)’s outreach programme to reduce trade and consumption of wildlife.

These trained volunteers go out to night markets in urban areas to talk to the average Malaysian about the decreasing population of tigers in Malaysia and the cruelty that is inflicted on these creatures for illegal gains.

Definitely not an easy task for young people, to approach total strangers and tell them about pertinent wildlife issues, but these students are ready and raring to go to help save our tigers.

“We are trying to tell people and create awareness about tiger protection,” says Wong. “Tigers are almost extinct. There are only 400 to 500 left. We’re trying to tell people not to buy tiger products and not to support any activities that will harm wildlife and endangered species.”

So far, the Mycat campaign has reached three night markets in the Klang Valley: Taman Petaling, Kota Damansara and SS2. At these spots, a booth is set up with display items ranging from tiger pelt and bones, deer trophies, traps, traditional remedies derived from endangered wildlife, and posters depicting the cruel manner of poaching and smuggling.

These young volunteers would approach patrons of the night markets, and tell them about the illegal wildlife activities that are decimating the population of tigers and other endangered species.

“The idea is that if people don’t buy or use the products, there would be no need to kill the tigers. So far, it’s awareness first,” says Lee.

Yap chips in: “We gave out bags and fridge magnets, and there is a hotline number on the items. They can call when they have information about illegal activities related to the hunting of tigers or the selling of tiger products.”

At each site, the group would split into two groups. One mans the booth while the other goes around the night market.

And it’s definitely not easy to approach total strangers to talk about something which many feel does not involve them anyway. The volunteers were often ignored.

For example, Wong approached a man of about 50, but was asked by the man what his motive was. Wong was at first shocked by his reaction, but then managed to get the man interested enough to approach their booth. There were other instances when the volunteers themselves got “lectured” by the people they approached.

“One elderly man told me, ‘If we don’t eat animal meat, then what are we going to eat? Human meat?’” says Yap, laughing.

Says Khaw: “I find that the older people are not so interested in these issues, but the younger ones are more open-minded and want to know more.”

Wong feels that there are a lot of things that people can do to contribute to saving endangered wildlife, but they just don’t want to.

“They feel that it’s not something that involves them, that environmental issues are none of their business,” he adds. “Perhaps people can start with small things, like reducing the use of plastic bags and electricity, to help save the environment in general. And for the endangered species, people should stop using products made from them and stop consuming the meats.”

The four students were introduced to the Mycat programme by their lecturer. They say apart from getting a chance to help the environment and wildlife, they also get to improve their people skills.

“We’re giving something back to the environment. I take this as a very good chance to gain experience in dealing with people, especially strangers,” says Wong.

“I’m not very good at talking,” Yap says, laughing, “so I’m trying to build up my soft skills. But the main reason (I’m doing this) is the environment. You can feel that the weather is very hot nowadays. And the tiger population is decreasing. It’s all caused by humans being irresponsible towards the environment.”

So far, they say, the experience at the three night markets has been fun.

“It’s an eye-opening experience,” says Lee. “We read a lot about these things but we don’t know how we can start to help. This is a chance for us to help, so why not take it?”

More links
Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers MYCAT website