Cambodia 

Orangutans – dying to please in Cambodia?

A set of four postcards we would greatly appreciate your help with
sending to the relevant authorities.
Please see How to Help page

The government of Cambodia acted commendably quickly in prosecuting the owner of the Koh Kong Safari World back in July 2005, for having illegally imported 36 orangutans from Thailand – a country which orangutans do not inhabit in the wild. These orangutans are suspected to have been acquired from the Safari World Zoo in Bangkok, Thailand – the very same place that had previously been raided by the Thai authorities and found to have 115 orangutans in its possession.

For the full story (pdf file) please click here

Sadly, since the prosecution, the owner of Koh Kong Safari World has been allowed to keep the orangutans and to make matters even worse, dress them up in human clothes and humiliate them on a daily basis in front of crowds of paying visitors.

The children of Central Kalimantan, Borneo, want their orangutans returned.
Photo: Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation

It is a shame that Cambodia has not attempted to repatriate these orangutans to their country of origin (Malaysia or Indonesia – almost certainly the latter) and in doing so, meet their international obligations under the CITES agreement.

It is an even greater shame, bordering on a scandal, that the CITES Secretariat has until recently done nothing about this clear breach of the Convention. It is time for CITES to now implement sanctions against Cambodia for failing to honour its obligations in respect to these orangutans.

How can you help the situation in Cambodia?

Would you be able to write to the Secretary General of CITES, Mr. Willem Wijnstekers, and ask him what is he doing about these orangutans in Cambodia and will he bring sanctions against Cambodia? With this and any other letter you write to do with this campaign, please be polite.

Mr. Willem Wijnstekers e-mail address is: willem.wijnstekers@cites.org

Prime Minister of Cambodia Samdech Hun Sen: please could you write and ask him politely if he could personally arrange for the 36 illegal orangutans held at Koh Kong Safari World, to be returned without further delay to their country of origin?

His e-mail address is: cabinet1a@hotmail.com and copy your e-mail to this address: cabinet@norodomsihanouk.info

An e-mail to Ambassador Hor Nambora at the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in London asking him the same question as above would also be a great help to the campaign.

His e-mail address is: cambodianembassy@btconnect.com

Please do bear in mind – these orangutans cannot help themselves. They have only us to rely on to save them from a fate arguably worse than death.

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