The Jakarta Post 11 Jan 18;
The US Embassy, the Indonesian government and the Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) Foundation on Thursday announced the successful release of two male and two female rescued orangutans into the Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park in the center of Kalimantan.
The release of the four orangutans raised the total number of the rescued critically endangered animals in the national park to 75 since the first release in August 2016.
The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has committed US$87.8 million from 2015 to 2020 to assist the Indonesian government improve the management of nearly two million hectares of orangutan habitat and preserve protected species.
“We are proud to work with the Indonesian government and the BOS Foundation to release more orangutans back to their natural habitat,” USAID Acting Mission Director Ryan Washburn said in a statement.
Central Kalimantan Conservation and Natural Resources Center (BKSDA) head Adib Gunawan said: “We should continue to release orangutans back into their natural habitat because there are still hundreds of orangutans currently residing in rehabilitation centers.”
The head of the Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park Center for Central and West Kalimantan Heru Raharjo said his institution would make sure all of the orangutans were able to reintegrate into their habitat and increase their population.
The CEO of the BOS Foundation, Jamartin Sihite, said there were hundreds of other orangutans waiting at the Foundation’s rehabilitation center in Nyaru Menteng.
“Let us work together to save the remaining orangutans and forests because conserved and protected forests are important factors for the quality of human life.” (ebf)
