A RM10,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the
arrest and successful conviction of those causing the death of 13
endangered Bornean Pygmy elephants at Yayasan Sabah Conservation area in
the Gunung Rara Forest Reserve, Tawau.
The reward is offered
by the Malaysian Association of Tour & Travel Agents (MATTA) Sabah
which said the death of the elephants, believed to be caused by
poisoning, was a great loss to the state and tourism industry as viewing
them in the wild was always the highlight of nature wildlife tours.
MATTA
Sabah chairman KL Tan said Bornean elephants were small in numbers and
found in isolated pockets and listed as endangered animals. They were
indigenous to Borneo and their generic distinctiveness made them one of
the highest priority population for Asian Elephants conservation.
“If
the shocking death of the Bornean elephants is confirmed to have been
due to intentional poisoning, MATTA Sabah would offer a cash reward of
RM10,000 for information leading to successful conviction of the
culprits,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He urged those with
information to contact the joint task force directed by Minister of
Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Masidi Manjun and consisting of
Sabah Wildlife Department, Forestry Department, Yayasan Sabah, WWF and
Royal Malaysia Police.
“We urged the public to assist the task
force to investigate the matter and to ensure there is no malicious
intent on the innocent elephants.
“This cash reward is a positive
indication of the travel industry involvement that we are serious in
conservation and sustaining Sabah as an eco and wildlife destination,”
Tan said.
“MATTA’s contribution is one of the proactive measures
to express its interest to the community that we care and the need to
protect the Bornean elephants and other endangered wildlife.
Conservation of endangered wildlife is for the benefit of our future
generation and sustaining tourism growth in Sabah,” he said.
Tan
pointed out one of the key factors in Sabah’s flourishing tourism
industry is its nature based tourism, which raked in an estimated
RM5.178 billion in revenue with 2.8 million tourists in 2012.
The
viewing of the Bornean elephants in Lower Kinabatangan, Tabin Wildlife
Reserve and Danum Valley is one of the main attractions for UK, Europe,
Japanese and Australian tourists to Sabah.
Tourism benefits the
whole community due to its spin-off effects and so the community will
all lose out if we are not united to conserve our wildlife heritage in
Sabah.
Source: Borneo Post
Menurut laporan, semua kematian tersebut berlaku di kawasan hutan yang sedang diubahsuai menjadi kawasan perladangan di dalam hutan simpan kekal itu.
ReplyDeleteLandskap hutan di Sabah perlu dilindungi sepenuhnya. Semua kelulusan penukaran status perlu dikaji semula oleh Jabatan Perhutanan Sabah dan dinilai bukan semata-mata daripada segi komersial tetapi juga daripada perspektif spesis terancam dan ekologi landskap.
ReplyDelete“Penukaran status membawa kepada penerokaan hutan dimana ia akan menyebabkan kehilangan habitat semula jadi bagi kumpulan gajah tersebut, sekali gus memaksa mereka mencari makanan dan habitat alternatif,” tambah Dr Dionysius.
ReplyDeleteMenurut beliau, penyelesaian jangka panjang yang holistik amat diperlukan untuk menangani dan mengurangkan masalah.
ReplyDeleteStatus gajah perlu dinaikkan kepada status 'dilindungi sepenuhnya' di bawah Bahagian 1 Jadual 1 Enakmen Pemuliharaan Hidupan Liar Sabah, seperti yang dicadangkan dalam Pelan Tindakan Gajah Jabatan Hidupan Liar Sabah 2012-2016, tetapi masih belum dilaksanakan.
ReplyDeleteRondaan berskala besar dan kerap adalah penting bagi mengelakkan konflik ini daripada berlaku lagi. Walau bagaimanapun, memandangkan kawasan yang memerlukan rondaan ini amat luas, ia merupakan satu tugas yang berat untuk Jabatan Hidupan Liar Sabah.
ReplyDeleteSumber yang banyak termasuk perkakasan, tenaga manusia dan kewangan harus diperuntukkan bagi Jabatan. Program Warden Kehormat Hidupan Liar yang sedia ada amat berguna dan perlu ianya perlu diperluaskan.
ReplyDeleteganjaran ini dikhabarkan di naikkan lagi.
ReplyDelete