All animals have been secured at the BKSDA Station in Asmat District, South Papua Province, for investigation, according to a press statement received from the quarantine agency on Thursday.
According to Head of the South Papua Quarantine Agency Cahyono, the officials found the smuggling attempt during their routine checks of passengers and cargo at Agats Port on August 11.
During the inspection of passengers of KM Sirimau, a vessel belonging to state-owned ship operator PT Pelni, bound for Pomako Port in Mimika, Central Papua, they found a suspicious plastic container.
Inside the container typically used for household goods, there were dozens of lories, he said, adding that a further search led them to a cardboard box containing a crocodile, hidden under a passenger's bed.
Those animals must be protected to preserve biodiversity and prevent extinction, he said while highlighting the importance of strengthening inter-agency cooperation in curbing the illegal wildlife trade.
Smuggling violates Indonesia's Law No. 21/2019 on Animal, Fish and Plant Quarantine, and Law No. 5/2009 on Natural Resource Conservation, Cahyono said.
In addition, as part of the prevention and mitigation efforts, the inter-agency cooperation is needed to end the illegal wildlife trade and preserve ecological stability in South Papua, he said.
The Papua region remains vulnerable to smuggling and illegal trade of wildlife.
On February 28, 2022, for instance, a joint team of personnel from the BKSDA and Agricultural Quarantine-West Papua Offices foiled an attempt to smuggle 59 endemic birds and reptiles.
Among the protected animals that could have been saved included 15 green tree pythons (Morelia viridis), nine green tree monitors (Varanus prasinus), and 14 monitor lizards (Varanus indicus).
Meanwhile, several endemic birds rescued from the smuggling attempt included a hooded butcherbird (Cracticus cassicus) and a green-naped lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus).
Those animals that are native to Papua and other Indonesian islands would be smuggled through MV Gunung Dempo which is anchored at the port of Sorong City on Feb 28, 2022.
The BKSDA-Papua and West Papua Offices continue to protect the provinces' endemic species from the practices of illegal trade and smuggling.
On December 18, 2021, the Papua BKSDA released three lesser birds of paradise (Paradisaea minor) and one magnificent riflebird (Ptiloris magnificus) into the Nyei Toro forest of Ravenirara Subdistrict in the province.
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Translator: Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Primayanti
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