SEPT 13 — TRAFFIC and WWF-Malaysia commend Perhilitan Kelantan and their counterparts in the Customs Department for foiling an attempt in Tumpat, to smuggle a tiger and four leopards out of the country on Tuesday.

Thanks to their hard work, yet another criminal has been apprehended. Sadly, this also means that we have five less endangered animals in our forest.

Asian big cats, like this tiger and leopards, are threatened throughout their range by illegal hunting and poaching, and Malaysia is no exception. Between 2010-2011, the government and conservation partners found close to one thousand snares in just three of Malaysia’s Tiger priority areas. 

TRAFFIC’s report on the analysis of tiger parts seized in 13 tiger countries released in March this year highlights that Malaysia has already lost at least 94 tigers from 2000-2012, based on the 33 seizures that have been reported to have occurred throughout the country during that period.  More tiger losses have very likely gone undetected.

This year marks the fifth year since the birth of the Malaysian Tiger Conservation Action Plan (NTCAP), yet implementation continues to fail for the same reasons year after year and challenges are mounting.

Poachers are constantly ahead of the game, are often well armed and well organised. Despite all our best efforts, our shared goal of doubling tiger numbers seem to be defied by people such as this smuggler in Kelantan, who was brazen enough to transport the carcasses from the back seat of his car; clearly fearless of notice or capture.

It is precisely cases like these that compelled TRAFFIC and WWF-Malaysia earlier this week, to call on the Malaysian government to set up a National Tiger Task Force to truly step up the effort to save wild tigers.

Yes, such a Task Force would look into the current major challenge of enforcement, much like 1NRE does currently. However, the National Tiger Task Force we are proposing will require a more strong central leadership by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE).  Adopting and localising the successful model of India’s Tiger Conservation Authority, the National Tiger Task Force would ensure the science, personnel, regional enforcement cooperation and awareness-raising efforts necessary to ensure the successful implementation of the NTCAP, and ultimately reverse the decline in Malaysia’s tigers.

Because, while seizures are important, it is more critical that our forests are eradicated of criminals who set traps and hunt tigers. The first step towards this goal is to safeguard the tiger’s home; failing which, smugglers must be caught and imprisoned to the maximum extent of the law.  On the latter issue, conservationists and enforcement officers will recall a similar case in Tumpat in 2005 - the man found in possession of a butchered tiger in his freezer got away with an insignificant punishment and no jail time.

Earlier this year, a man convicted of killing 22 tigers was sentenced to two years in jail; hardly a deterrent for what is the biggest seizure of tiger parts in Malaysian history.  The courts also failed to impose the mandatory fine.

Tiger criminals are part of organised criminal networks, that scheme to extract tigers and move them across borders quickly and quietly. They target tigers, and we in turn must make them our target; to put them out of business for a very long time. These are the very issues that the proposed National Tiger Task Force would look into.

We hope that there will be a thorough investigation into this case, to unveil all the parties involved and bring the guilty parties to book. We also hope that the Ministry will acknowledge that we are not winning this war and seriously consider the establishment of the National Tiger Task Force, to break down these criminal networks and ultimately save our tigers from extinction.

* Dato’ Dr Dionysius Sharma is the CEO of WWF-Malaysia while Dr. Chris R. Shepherd is Deputy Regional Director of TRAFFIC Southeeast Asia.

** This is the personal opinion of the writers or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.