Endangered Animals Rescued by Police

Khmer Times
Tin Sokhavuth

A macaque is released into the wild in January. These primates, in high demand for biomedical research, have become a target for poachers despite an international ban. Supplied

Two men were arrested on Saturday in Modulkiri province after being found transporting 103 kilograms of live endangered animals in the trunk of their car.

Koh Nhek district police chief Klot Sokhea told Khmer Times that police officers, in cooperation with officials from the provincial environment department, had stopped the car following reports it was transporting animals.

In the trunk, he said that officers found 40 pangolins, one monkey, one otter, six cobras and eight turtles.

All were released back into nearby forest on Sunday, he said, with the support of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) rangers.

Chhith Sam Ath, country director for WWF-Cambodia, said yesterday that loss of forest habitat and increased poaching and encroachment from villagers posed a serious threat to Cambodia’s wildlife.

With the country’s population rising, he said that demand for increasingly endangered wild animals, both for domestic consumption and sale abroad, was also increasing.

Cambodia’s role in the illegal transport of wildlife products was further highlighted on Friday after 128 pieces of ivory were discovered in a shipping container at Sihanoukville Port.

Customs Department chief Kin Ly said that such a shipment was clearly intended to be further transported onwards from Cambodia as there was no market for the expensive ivory in the country. He also noted that three tons of ivory had been discovered at the port in 2014.

In June, to commemorate the annual World Environment Day, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) office in Cambodia issued a statement stressing the need for effective laws and regulations to protect against the ongoing degradation of Cambodia’s environment. It cited the importance of its Environmental Code and the National Environment Strategy and Action Plan (NESAP), a draft law which is due to be finished by the end of the year.

It will form a legal framework to both support sustainable development and tackle environmental issues, such as climate change and habitat protection.