Indonesian Police and ProFauna's Another Revelation of the Illegal Parrot Trade

The East Java Police Department has been successful in revealing the parrot syndicate in Surabaya, East Java Indonesia. Surabaya is notorious as the hub of the illegal parrot trade in Indonesia. After receiving ProFauna's information, the police helped by the organization investigated the syndicate and decided to raid a warehouse of the mafia. The operation which was held last 7^th May 2009 resulted 26 protected parrots consisting of 10 black-capped Lories (Lorius lorry), 13 Sulphur-crested Cockatoos (Cacatua galerita), and three Goffin Cockatoos (Cacatua goffini). The perpetrator has been apprehended by the police and waiting for trial.

The raid itself has made good results as there have been no protected parrots displayed at Surabaya bird (animal or pet) markets, according to the records of ProFauna Indonesia, a wildlife protection organization in Indonesia. It is also covered by many media including national television and radio stations. Just last couple days, a police officer voluntary handed out two protected parrots owned by his family to ProFauna's rescue center. The officer decided to give in the endangered birds after watching the raid in television and he realized that possessing the birds broke the law.

The police and ProFauna keep investigating into the illegal trade. Another revelation was made by the team. Last night (24 June 2009), they raided a hotel which was located an hour from Surabaya and found 10 protected parrots displayed to entertain the hotel guests. The birds confiscated by the police are three sulphur-crested Cockatoos, a yellow-crested Cockatoo, three Goffin Cockatoos, and three black-capped lories.

To hunt, kill, transport, possess, keep, sell, buy, or trade protected parrots violate the Indonesian wildlife act. According to the 1990 law number 5 concerning the Conservations of the Natural Resources and the Ecosystems, the trade of protected wildlife is prohibited and violators are liable to a maximum five year prison term and 100 million IDR (10,000 USD) fine.

ProFauna applauds the great jobs of the East Java Police Department that keeps enforcing the law to tackle the illegal parrot trade. The organization will also keep providing the police with enforcement assistance to make sure that such wildlife crime must receive full extent of the law and must not go unpunished.