Jakarta (Greeners) – Officials from Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) team and Pati District Police,and Central Java Natural Resources Agency arrested three people, owners of body parts of endangered species, with the largest number from elephant ivory in the forms of cigarette pipes, rings, bracelets, and necklaces.

The foil of illegal wildlife trade put threats on elephants in Indonesia, which is currently only 2,000 individuals left.

Sustyo Irianto, director of forestry prevention and protection, said that based on preliminary analysis, the loss caused by illegal elephant ivory trade in Pati district reached to Rp420 billion (US$29 million). Evidence confiscated from the case is 200 ivory made items, such as cigarette pipes, rings, bracelets, and necklaces.

“Today’s fierce technology in the 4.0 industrial era, our challenge is with telematics crimes, including illegal wildlife trade, illegal logging or other crimes. With the center of intelligence and our cyber patrol, we are ready to monitor crimes,” said Irianto in Jakarta on Thursday (02/05/2019).

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Furthermore, he said that recent elephant deaths in Indonesia also happened in other locations, such as Aceh, Riau, Bengkulu and Lampung, which possible to increase if illegal elephant ivory trade is not considered as serious crimes by all law enforcement.

“I regret that in this case, the consumers are middle-upper class people. It is not just about the money, but with this case, it means elephant population is under threats because elephant is one of ecosystem know in the forest need to be protected,” he said.

To identify the origin of the ivory, it requires lab tests. However, from the structures of confiscated items, Irianto said that the ivory come from Indonesia.

The raid is the follow up of Ministry of Environment and Forestry’s Cyber Patrol Team of Directorate General of Law Enforcement.

The team found three Facebook accounts, — chanif mangkubumi, onny pati and wong brahma –, actively trade via only parts of protected species to be distributed in Indonesia.

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Yusiandi Susmana, head of Pati police, said that the police arrested the suspects and confiscated evidence on 28 April 2019. They found products made of elephant ivory in different shapes and sizes and sold via online.

“As partners of civil servant investigators, we coordinate and monitor, also assist and arrests to the three locations, and we did case reconstruction,” said Susmana.

For this case, Ministry of Environment and Forestry is working with Pati District Police which resulted to three men arrested, — OF (38 years), CK (44 years), and MHF (31 years) –, in Pati district of Central Java province.

Confiscated items are:
– 1 intact elephant ivory size 30 centimeter.
– 18 elephant ivories size 20-30 centimeter.
– 175 cigarettes pipes made of ivory size 5-20 centimeter.
– 31 bracelets made of elephant ivory.
– 53 rings made of elephant ivory.
– Four necklaces made of elephant ivory.
– 22 bracelets made of bahar root.
– Seven deer antlers offsets.
– 17 honey bear nails.
– Sets of handicrafts equipment.

The perpetrators of illegal ivory trade will be liable for five years in prison and Rp100 million (US$6,995) of fine at maximum as stipulates by the 1990 Law on Conservation.

Reports by Dewi Purningsih

Jakarta (Greeners) – East Java police and national police arrested seven suspects for six baby komodo dragons smuggling in Flores, East Nusa Tenggara.

Wiratno, director general of Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation of Ministry of Environment and Forestry, said the ministry cooperating with national police and all district police in Indonesia declaring “war” on illegal wildlife trading, domestic and international.

Wiratno added that they would fought even for one bird and returned to the wildlife, because animals have the rights to live.

Based on monitoring in 2018, at least 2,897 komodo dragons (Varanus komodoensis) in Komodo National Park, while outside the park, the species can be found in Flores island.

Based on site occupancy and camera trap methods, there are four to 14 komodo dragons in Wae Wuul Nature Reserve, between 2013 and 2018, two to six komodo in Ontoloe island between 2016 and 2018, six komodo in Essential Ecosystem Area in Pota Protected Forest between 2016 and 2018, and 11 komodo in Longos island in 2016.

“[The police] had confiscated six komodo dragons from three cases. Based on suspect’s information, they have conduct transactions for 41 komodo dragons in the last three years. In this investigation process, there will be development to foil illegal wildlife network,” he said in Jakarta on Tuesday (02/04/2019).

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Experts from Zoology’s Genetics Laboratory of LIPI, stated that based on morphology of the snout, color pattern of the body and color of the tongue, it shows the species as Varanus komodoensis, which identified from Flores island, not Komodo National Park.

Further results determined through DNA to check its genetic diversity which reveals the origins of komodo dragons. The DNA examination is currently conducted at the lab and the results will be revealed in 14 working days.

The cyber police first discovered a Facebook account supplying the species, which then followed up by the National Police’s crime unit and East Java Police, starting in 22 February 2019 to 8 March 2019, who confiscated six baby komodo dragons, weighing between 0.4 to 1.6 kilograms and 75-125 centimeter length, ready to be sold overseas.

“The network does not only sell komodo, but also birds, beaver, and other animals. For komodo, the network has their own hunters in Flores and East Nusa Tenggara, their own collectors who are now in our most wanted list. They are very experienced, they no longer use air transport but land transport to fool officials. The komodo will be stored into tubes carried by drivers and couriers to Surabaya, and it will switch couriers from there,” said Adi Karya Tobing, head of special crime unit at the National Police.

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Furthermore, Tobing said there are five people under investigation. The suspects, — FS, AN, NZ, AB, AW, were arrested by East Java police, and FW and RB were arrested by the National Police.

Based on suspects’ information, they have managed to sell 41 komodo dragons under their network.

“However, we also found there are 56 live animals as evidence in this case. We will also work with PPTAK (Center for Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis) to trace the money used by suspects as there are suspicions that these komodo were sold overseas,” he said.

Necessary Revision of The 1990 Law on Conservation

Following rampant illegal wildlife trading online that could push the revision of the 1990 Law on Conservation, Tobing said that not only animals needed the protection but also law enforcement because these illegal trading are getting hard to be detected in traditional or conventional markets.

“If there are incidents and cases like this, for instance the transaction can be charged just like the drugs law, there’s delivery order and undercover buy. For animals, the mode of operation is 98 percent using social media. So, if the punishment is not stricter, there will be no deterrent effects,” he said.

Indonesian government currently is not pursuing the revision of the 1990 law on conservation arguing that it is still relevant, hence no needs for improvements.

Nevertheless, Wiratno said that there’s a possibility for a revision to reopen considering low punishments given to illegal wildlife traders.

“These strict clauses need to be partially revised and it will take into considerations,” said Wiratno.

Reports by Dewi Purningsih

Jakarta (Greeners) – Despite of strong law urgently needed to tackle current conservation issues, lawmakers are reluctant to immediately pass the bill on natural resources and its ecosystem arguing that current law is sufficient, said a researcher in Jakarta, on Wednesday (27/02/2019).

“The legal umbrella for conservation applied in the country is UU No.5/1990 [law issued in 1990] on natural resources and conservation, which is no longer relevant to deal with the complexity in the field. The law is 29 years old and never been revised, so it’s no longer can keep up with time and rapid technology development, for instance in responding illegal wildlife trade crimes,” said Trias Fetra, researcher from Madani Berkelanjutan Foundation.

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Based on Wildlife Conservation Society Indonesia, illegal wildlife crimes significantly increased from 106 cases in 2015 to 225 cases in 2017.

Meanwhile, Center for Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis (PPATK) in 2018 revealed that illegal plants and animals trade had reached Rp13 trillion per year (US$920 million).

Fetra said that based on the data, current law is unable to effectively tackle illegal trading and set deterrent effect.

If the government considers the law is still relevant in natural resources crimes, he added, however the data states otherwise.

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Rika Fajrini, head of forest and land management division at Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL), said the reason for government considers the bill is irrelevant because the draft proposed by lawmakers is not substantial.

Fajrini cited no criminal clauses on corporate involved in illegal wildlife crimes.

“ICEL [Indonesian Center for Environmental Law] argues the urgency to bag the intellectual or major players of illegal wildlife trading, the corporate crimes, which is excluded by the UU 5/1990,” she said, “Hence, we encourage working together to strengthen the substances of the draft, which ones are wrong or need improvements. Let’s work together, not just ignore or doing nothing.”

Furthermore, she said there are substances not in consideration with recent conflicts, such as a clause in the bill states, “Everyone manages natural resources will be convicted” with natural resources definition covers plants and animals, however, the 1990 Law states, “Everyone manages protected natural resources will be convicted”.

“So, it means domesticating animals can be convicted. This is obviously not what we expected if we want to catch intellectual criminals exploiting our natural resources,” she said.

She said that if the bill is not improved then private sector will be given more portion to manage natural resources.

Corporation will just add complications to recent conflicts between people and conservation, she added.

Reports by Dewi Purningsih