New Straits Times 13 Jul 14;
EVERY DAY, the people who look after the forests and wildlife in Sabah risk having a firearm pointed at them by hunters.
With over four million hectares of forest reserves, parks and sanctuaries, the battle against poachers in the state is by no means “a walk in the park”.
The forests are protected by the Forestry Department, Wildlife Department, Sabah Parks and, to a certain extent, by Yayasan Sabah, a foundation that holds key conservation areas.
Every plot of protected forest teems with wildlife, including those on the endangered species list and high in demand — which is why poachers risk life and limb to hunt them.
According to a report compiled in 2012 by the international wildlife trade monitoring network, or TRAFFIC, of the 332 shops selling wild meat in the country, 83 are in Sabah.
The meat sold include those of the Sun bear, sambar deer, barking deer, freshwater terrapin, bearded pig and monitor lizard.
More than 150 shops were found selling bear bile in Malaysia, 10 of which were in Sabah.
Another worrying figure is the trade in 22,200 pangolins in the state over a period of 13 months, according to a report by the State Wildlife department in 2009.
At RM500 per kg for pangolin meat, it’s not difficult to understand why poachers abound.
At the Fifth East and Southeast Asian Wild Animal Rescue Network (WARN) Conference late last year, officers entrusted to look after the forest and its wildlife spoke of their concerns.
Among them was Indra Sujoto, a Forestry officer, who told of hunters running syndicated operations.
“There are villagers in remote locations or even those in protected forests who hunt for food, but they are not the ones we worry about.
“Our concern are with those from urban areas, who sneak into forest reserves and hunt animals to profit from the wild meat trade.
“There have been occasions where we were threatened, verbally abused and even had guns pointed at us in a bid to frighten us,” he revealed during the conference.
Motion sensor cameras set up to study wildlife have captured images of people carrying shotguns encroaching on crucial protected sites, such as Crocker Range National Park, Tawau Hills National Park, Maliau Basin Conservation Area, Tabin Wildlife Reserve, Malua Bio-Bank, Imbak Canyon and Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, to name a few.
Among the wildlife on the endangered species list include the Sumatran rhino, seladang, clouded leopard, sun bear, orang utan, proboscis monkeys, sambar deer and Bornean pygmy elephants.
Kinabatangan-based Danau Girang Field Centre director Dr Benoit Goossens, who also spoke at the conference, suggested that enforcement officers be armed.
“They should also be provided with equipment, such as camera traps and drones, to patrol protected areas and track down poachers.”
Sabah Wildlife Department assistant director Dr Sen Nathan stressed on the need for a global approach to enhance cooperation among agencies and non-governmental organisations to curb the hunting of and trading in wild animals.
“Wild animals in Sabah are a major asset to its tourism industry, the second biggest contributor to the state revenue.
“This makes protection and enforcement of laws crucial yet challenging.
“We have the laws but enforcement has been lacking because of the lack of manpower and funding.”
Sen, who also heads the department’s Wildlife Rescue Unit,
said agencies, departments and NGOs in Sabah could work with WARN to curb poaching and trade in wildlife through information sharing, greater awareness and education.
“Its an uphill task but we will not stop trying.”
All for the money
JOHN (not his real name) hunts wild boar for a living but will not think twice if a sambar deer crosses his path in the jungle.
The hunter said that in the places where he hunted wild boar, there were hardly other animals worth the precious bullets and time.
“Getting a deer means I can earn more because the demand for venison from restaurants is quite high these days.
“I sell venison at between RM15 and RM18 per kg and I can get more than 100kg of meat and bones from an adult male,” said John, who also shuttles passengers from towns to remote villagers in his four-wheel-drive vehicle.
John said he was not sure if shooting wild boar was illegal, especially near oil palm plantations where they were considered a pest, but he knew he needed a permit from the state Wildlife Department to do so.
“But how do we get these permits deep in the interior?” he asked.
The RM5 for the permit to hunt wild boar for food or RM50 for commercial purposes is also an obstacle to hunters like him.
“I hunt once or twice a week, depending on the weather and sell what I get to regular clients. The meat I supply is cleaned and de-boned properly and is priced between RM8 and RM10 per kg depending on the cuts and amount ordered.”
John said encountering deer or other animals were rare unless he ventured deep into protected forests.
“I prefer not to take that risk. Moreover, most animals stick to the same trail in the wild and I go back to several spots known only to me. So, it’s wild boar for me,” he said.
Shells for his shotgun are hard to come by because of strict monitoring by the authorities.
“To buy ammunition, we need to produce hunting permits and it’s not cheap.”
He revealed, however, that there were people from urban areas who hunt in groups and they tend to enter protected areas.
“Its easy for us to tell who they are because of the things they bring, such as oversized cooler boxes, a convoy of souped-up four-wheel-drives, sometimes with motorcycles in tow, spot lights and their firearms. However to detect them is not easy because of the many different routes and tracks.”
Clear and present danger to wildlife
ENFORCEMENT against poachers in Sabah is not easy.
Not when hunting has been a way of life for generations of the many native communities.
In the past, people hunted for food. And though that may be the case for some who live in remote areas, there are those who do it for profit or sport.
The authorities, however, are coming down hard on poachers.
On Feb 13, two Filipinos were jailed for four years for hunting and hurting an orang utan in Lahad Datu. They were the first to be jailed under the Sabah Wildlife Enactment 1997.
Wildlife rangers have also raided markets with a reputation for selling wild meat and intensified patrols near forest reserves.
On Dec 11 last year, three hawkers were arrested for selling wild meat without permits in Nabawan. About 160kg of meat was confiscated from them.
Sabah Wildlife Department director Datuk Dr Laurentius Ambu said there would be no let up and the department was looking into setting up an enforcement unit to tackle wildlife trade and illegal hunting.
“This unit will focus on wildlife trade, illegal hunting and bush meat trade, using the best tools against wildlife smuggling and poaching and having a permanent presence in all protected areas in Sabah.”
Laurentius said it came as no surprise that animals were hunted in forest reserves and national parks where hunting was forbidden.
“There is a clear and present danger to the wildlife in Sabah.”
Echoing similar sentiments was Tourism, Culture and Environment minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun, who gave his full commitment to tackle the wildlife trade and illegal hunting.
Wildlife and forests are an integral part of the tourism industry, which is the second biggest money spinner in the state.
“Sabah will not be a place where our beautiful wildlife and national treasures are decimated by heartless people.”
On the court decision against the two orang utan hunters Masidi said the state government supported using the full force of the law to protect wildlife.
“We will show no mercy to anyone harming our protected and endangered species. Sabah is blessed with some of God’s wonderful creatures and it is our moral duty to protect them.”
