Bali
The endangered Green Turtles are being
smuggled and slaughtered for human consumption
under the disguise of 'traditional and religious purposes'
Between the 1970's and 1990's, Bali had been notorious as the hub of sea turtle smuggling with 27,000 sea turtles were slaughtered per year. [1] The trade in green sea turtles remained a $1 million business despite a law enacted by the Indonesian government in January 1999 making it illegal to catch, possess or eat the animals. In Bali, local officials created a huge loophole by allowing hunters to catch 5,000 green sea turtles a year. In practice, this meant there was no limit on the number caught because the quota was never enforced. Despite the loophole being repealed, Bali's inhabitants slaughtered more endangered sea turtles than anyone else in the world, bringing the species ever closer to extinction. [2]
Sea turtles face numerous hazards. Humans have long hunted the animals for their meat, shells and leather and plundered their eggs for food. At sea, fishing nets trap and drown them. Coastal pollution poisons their habitat, and beachfront construction destroys their nesting sites. There are seven oceangoing turtle species, and all are listed as endangered under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Indonesia, home to six of the seven species, signed the treaty in 1979. The only kind the Balinese like to eat is the green sea turtle. It can weigh 400 pounds and measure 3 feet in length. It can stay underwater for 30 minutes without coming up for air and is known to travel 1,400 miles from its feeding grounds to its nesting site.
According to data from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), an estimated 100,000 green turtles are killed in Indonesian and Australian waters every year.
In most of the world, green sea turtles are considered endangered. In Bali, they are considered a moneymaker.
Thanks to ProFauna's and SOS Sea Turtles' continued campaign works against the trade and hands on project on some beaches in Bali from saving the nesting sea turtles, relocate the eggs, to releasing the babies to the sea; the trade had fallen drastically and in 2011 the environmental activists proudly announced that "The cages and slaughterhouses in Tanjung Benoa are now all empty and no more turtles are being traded in public places. While it is still possible to find some animals on the black market but they are now hard to find. The number of killed and traded animals have dropped around 90 percent since the onset of the campaign!" [3]
There were all reasons to be proud! After an eight year battle against the turtle mafia the activists seemed to have won the war - but, thanks to an intensive lobby by various interest groups, the Balinese Government had considered permitting the killing and trading of a thousand sea turtles ...for Balinese rituals. The governor of Bali had been pressured to permit slaughtering thousands of sea turtles for 'religious purposes'. Obviously such a decision would have opened the floodgates to uncontrolled killing once again and it would have been impossible to control the number of animals slaughtered! [3]
Fortunately, this was denied by the Indonesian government and never became a reality, according to an email received from Kurt Amsler, one of the foremost professional underwater photographers in Europe, founder of the NGO SOS Sea Turtles which has been working very hard to end the long standing illegal trade and slaughter of Green Sea Turtles in Bali.
Listen to an interview with Kurt Amsler on Wild Time Radio
Underwater photographer, author and filmmaker Kurt Amsler has been on many expeditions all around the world and apart from highlighting the beauty of the ocean and its creatures, he soon became aware of the many problems many species are facing and he has become a great voice for animals and uses his fame to highlight and campaign against the wrongdoings in many countries.
On WILD TIME Kurt talks mainly about the Sea Turtles in Indonesia and elsewhere and about the non-profit organisation SOS Seaturtles he founded in 1985. He gets into the nitty gritty of things and gives clear advise on what to do to help the endangered sea turtles. Of course the conversation also touches on sharks, feature-length documentaries and more. |
The gory reality of how sea turtles
are being slaughtered on Bali!
WARNING: The next video shows the very graphic slaughter of turtles in Bali.
The turtle's plastron is sliced and ripped open, the internal organs are being removed, blood scooped out, and the head cut off.
During this entire massacre, the poor turtle is alive and struggling in pain.
Part of this footage was broadcast on BBC in "Final Chance to Save Sea Turtles" hosted by Charlotte Uhlenbroek. Filmed in Bali 1996 for "Deeps Asia - Journeys to the Oceanic Frontiers" by John Wong. [5]
January 2013 - The issue is now rising its ugly head again!
The illegal turtle trade returns
to its old sheme
Another of an average 42 Green Sea Turtles slaughtered per day tries to protect itself while screaming in pain, as it is brutally slaughtered at the Tangung Grounds. How long can this go on! When will governments and individuals involved in this despicable trade be held accountable for their actions, honor their laws, agreements, responsibilities to protect this species and not exploited it, falsely distorting Balinese Religious needs for commercial exploitation and economical gains. Picture via Earth-Advocates.org
Wayan Wiradnyana, chairman of the Bali Sea Turtle Society, said in a meeting in Denpasar in January 2013, that the newest mode of alleged illegal trading of turtles was smuggling and trading living turtles onto the island.
“In the past few years, the turtles were slaughtered and cut into pieces to trade the meat on the black market, but since the last year, the trend has returned to its original illegal scheme — trafficking living turtles,” maintained Wiradnyana.
He elaborated that trading turtles in the form of cut meat was aimed at cheating the authorities. “They [the police and the authorities] would find it hard to recognize whether it was turtle meat or cuts of fish meat,” he said.
Now, the trend had changed. Turtles were being smuggled alive as the price was very high on the black market, he said. Moreover, sellers were suspicious that the cut up turtle meat was mixed with fish or other animal meat, he added.
Generally, a green turtle of 30 to 40 centimeters length in the carapace will be sold for Rp 1 million (US$103.50).
“We have also found that the turtles were being trafficked from the island of Sumbawa in West Nusa Tenggara. Previously, the turtles were mostly procured from Sulawesi, Maluku and Kalimantan,” he added.
The smuggling of the endangered green turtles onto the island of Bali has been ongoing to meet the demand for their meat. Traditionally, the Balinese people consumed turtle meat as a delicacy.
Legal and illegal turtle traders in Bali have claimed that their activities were an important part of religious rituals.
Some rituals in Bali required offerings using the meat of turtles and other protected species, such as eagles and tigers. However, the influential Indonesian Parishada Hindu Council (PHDI) issued a religious decree in August 2005 stipulating that other animals or symbols, drawings or cakes in the forms of those animals, could satisfy ritual requirements.
Meanwhile, Made Arjaya, chairman of Commission I of Bali Legislative Council, stated that people illegally trading in turtles should not use ritual activities as an excuse for such illicit practices. “I am hoping that the authorities have imposed strict punishments and sanctions against those committing such illegal activities,” the legislator said. [4]
How to help
Please help to stop the illegal turtle slaughter on Bali by taking the following actions:
1) Sign & share the petition at change.org started by Occupy for Animals that sends instant emails to the Office of the Indonesian Government in Bali, at the attention of the Governor, I Made Mangku Pastika, as well as a copy to the Tourism Board of Bali.
Your Honour I Made Mangku Pastika,
I'm very much concerned about how endangered sea turtles are being treated in your country. Until 10 years ago on Bali alone, an average of twenty thousand sea turtles per year were brutally cut out of their tortoiseshell alive! As a result of wise decisions by the Government, several actions by the Bali Police and campaigns by Indonesian and international animal welfare organizations, this number had fortunately dropped to 90 percent.
But sadly, in January 2013, your local newspapers reported that the illegal turtle trade had returned to it's old sheme, which has also been confirmed by your local animal and environment protection organisations. These proves that the protection offered in Bali is totally insufficient and that the police are not pursuing violations against Act No 7/1999, which prohibits the killing of and dealing with sea turtles, and against the CITES regulations that prohibits the trade of turtle products.
In view of the sea turtles being threatened with extinction, I urge you to honor your laws and to undertake all possible actions to stop this cruel and barbaric habit once and for all!
Not doing so will definitely damage the image of Bali and will have an impact on the number of visitors. Hundreds of thousands of people are very much concerned about Bali's sea turtles and I believe that the still existing sea turtle trade is not a good promotion for your country and Bali, which is a beautiful Island with friendly people and excellent hospitality.
It isn't worth to risk Bali's image because of a group of corrupt and insensible people from Tanjung-Benoa, who decimate one of the oldest inhabitants of the Oceans for their own profit. I hope that this situation in Bali becomes under control and the turtle killing will be stopped as soon as possible. Until such a time, however, I have decided not to visit your country and I will encourage others not to visit either.
Sincerely yours,
[your name]
2) Please sign the petition started by SOS Sea Turtles Switzerland/France that sends instant emails to emails to the Office of the Indonesian Government in Bali, at the attention of the Governor, I Made Mangku Pastika, as well as a copy to the Tourism Board of Bali.
3) In addition to signing the two petitions above, you can also phone and/or write to the Government's Office in Bali. Please copy and send the letter provided below, or send your own polite letter to:
The Government's Office in Bali
Jl. Basuki Rachmat Renon,
Denpasar, Bali,
Indonesia
+62811 3881 875 (SMS)
+62361 703334 (Hotline)
Please use the following email block: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
SAMPLE LETTER:
Your Honor,
In depth investigations by PROFAUNA Indonesia and WSPA (the World Society for the Protection of Animals) have shown that last year 1115 sea turtles were caught in south-east Sulawesi alone and were shipped to Bali. More than 600 animals were poached in Wakatobi National Park. The area of Wakatobi is a popular destination for tourists and divers from all over the world. These people bring foreign currency into the country and create jobs for locals.
These facts prove the protection offered in Wakatobi is totally insufficient and that the police are not pursuing violations against Act No 7/ 1999, which prohibits the killing of and dealing with sea turtles.
Based on these facts, countless tourists and divers - myself included - will not visit Bali and south-east Sulawesi anymore.
I believe that this is not the kind of news that will be beneficial to your country's reputation. I seriously hope, that you will do everything possible to bring this issue under rapid control and that this senseless massacre will be stopped as soon as possible and for good.
Sincerely yours,
[your name]
4) Please join the Facebook-page of Interfauna Indonesia to stay up-to-date about new actions to take. Please LIKE their page to be connected and to receive their updates.
Thank you!
The demonstration from 20th of June, 2013
With banners and posters, 20 activists of the animal and environmental organizations PRO FAUNA and SOS SEATURTLES have demonstrated in front of the government building against the slaughter and trade of the endangered sea turtles on 20th of June, 2013, in Denpasar, Bali.
In the presence of 25 journalists and other media people, around 25,000 signatures on petitions and letters of protests collected by SOS SEATURTLES and OCCUPY FOR ANIMALS, were presented to the Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika.
Kurt Amsler, founder of SOS SEA TURTLES, informed us that, after taking over the signatures, the Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, has promised an immediate stop of the illegal slaughter of sea turtles, to undertake serious actions against the illegal trade by police force, and the governor emphasized to support all efforts protecting this endangered species ...
SOS SEA TURTLES, PRO FAUNA and OFA are very happy about this promise, but - as suggested by Kurt Amsler - our petitions will remain active, they will continue to send letters and we'll continue to collect signatures until changes for the endangered sea turtles of Bali are clearly visible, and the success is really approved.
We sincerely thank all the good people who have supported this campaign by signing the petitions and spreading the word. Without YOU, this would not have been possible. THANK YOU!
Below, an article published 21st of June, 2013 in The Jakarta Post:
In the presence of 25 journalists and other media people, around 25,000 signatures on petitions and letters of protests collected by SOS SEATURTLES and OCCUPY FOR ANIMALS, were presented to the Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika.
Kurt Amsler, founder of SOS SEA TURTLES, informed us that, after taking over the signatures, the Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, has promised an immediate stop of the illegal slaughter of sea turtles, to undertake serious actions against the illegal trade by police force, and the governor emphasized to support all efforts protecting this endangered species ...
SOS SEA TURTLES, PRO FAUNA and OFA are very happy about this promise, but - as suggested by Kurt Amsler - our petitions will remain active, they will continue to send letters and we'll continue to collect signatures until changes for the endangered sea turtles of Bali are clearly visible, and the success is really approved.
We sincerely thank all the good people who have supported this campaign by signing the petitions and spreading the word. Without YOU, this would not have been possible. THANK YOU!
Below, an article published 21st of June, 2013 in The Jakarta Post:
Pastika pledges to stop turtle slaughter
BY NI KOMANG ERVIANI ON 2013-06-21
Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika has pledged to immediately stop the illegal slaughter of sea turtles on the island following international pressure.
“I will intensify coordination with the Bali Police to tightly supervise the possible illegal trading of sea turtles,” Pastika told journalists when visiting Warmadewa University in Denpasar on Thursday.
Pastika stressed that he completely supported efforts to protect the endangered species.
“Turtles are one of the few surviving prehistoric animals in modern times.”
During his term as Bali Police chief, Pastika frequently held raids confiscating illegally traded and trafficked turtles. Earlier this year, the police seized 33 sea turtles at Tanjung Benoa, while in 2012, the authorities foiled attempts to smuggle 220 sea turtles.
“I also visited food vendors selling turtle meat and implemented a crackdown on vendors.”
The smuggling and illegal trading of sea turtles onto the island has been longstanding to meet demand for turtle meat, a traditional food in Bali.
The Balinese also use turtle meat in several religious rituals as part of the offerings. However, since 2005, the powerful Indonesian Parishada Hindu Council (PHDI) confirmed that other meats, or images of the animals, could be used in place of the meat of endangered or protected animals, such as turtles and eagles.
Pastika also stressed that the Balinese used very little turtle meat in any ritual. “I still support the use of turtle meat for religious purposes.”
The provincial administration, he said, had enacted stern law enforcement against any parties found selling turtles on the black market.
In addition to enforcing the law, the government has also launched series of campaigns to arouse people’s awareness on the importance of protecting endangered species.
Recently, around 25,000 people signed a petition urging Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika and the tourist industry to stop the illegal slaughter of sea turtles. The petition, on the website change.org, called for support from animal lovers, environmentalists and individuals to protect sea turtles across the island.
Since last March, Indonesia-based ProFauna and SOS-Sea turtle from Switzerland and France have collaborated in the effort to garner voices from the international community to end this cruelty.
Sea turtles, also known as green turtles, are an endangered species and protected by the 1990 law on natural resource conservation. They are also listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), meaning that any commercial trade of specimens caught in the wild of this species is illegal. Indonesia has ratified the convention.
The petition says: ”Hundreds of thousands of people are very much concerned about Bali’s sea turtles and I believe that the existing sea turtle trade is not a good promotion for your country and Bali, which is a beautiful island with friendly people and excellent hospitality”.
“It is not worth risking Bali’s image because of a group of corrupt and irresponsible people from Tanjung Benoa, who decimate one of the oldest inhabitants of the oceans for their own profit. I hope that this situation in Bali is brought under control and the turtle killing will stop as soon as possible. Until such a time, however, I have decided not to visit your country and I will encourage others not to visit either,” the petition declares.
Following the petition, Pastika hoped that there would be no international boycott of Bali’s tourism as the government had been working hard to eradicate illegal turtle trading.
“Bali has been notorious for turtle slaughter. We have to work together to erase that negative image by taking serious action on the issue,” said Jatmiko Wiwoho, coordinator of ProFauna Bali. [6]
Thank you, dear Governor!
We would like to express our most heartfelt thanks to the Governor of Bali for his pledge to help protecting the endangered Green Turtles. We are very much looking forward to see the local laws protecting them being implemented and the illegal slaughter and trade to come to an end, finally.
The new petition
Your Honor,
it was with great joy that I have taken knowledge of your statement and promise to stop the killing and trading of Sea turtles on the island of Bali.
Hundreds of thousands of caring people are very much concerned about Bali's Sea turtles and so I believe the existing Sea turtle trade is not a good promotion for your country and Bali, which is such a beautiful island with very friendly people and excellent hospitality.
It is really not worth risking Bali's image because of a group of corrupt and irresponsible people from Tanjung Benoa, who decimate one of the oldest inhabitants of our oceans for their own profit.
Together with the organizations SOS-SEATURTLES Switzerland / France, PRO-FAUNA Indonesia and OCCUPY FOR ANIMALS, I hope that your promises are being honored; that this situation in Bali is being brought under control and that the killing will stop - at last.
Then afterwards, I would love to visit the island and your country again and I will convince others to do the same.
Yours faithfully,
[signer's name]
it was with great joy that I have taken knowledge of your statement and promise to stop the killing and trading of Sea turtles on the island of Bali.
Hundreds of thousands of caring people are very much concerned about Bali's Sea turtles and so I believe the existing Sea turtle trade is not a good promotion for your country and Bali, which is such a beautiful island with very friendly people and excellent hospitality.
It is really not worth risking Bali's image because of a group of corrupt and irresponsible people from Tanjung Benoa, who decimate one of the oldest inhabitants of our oceans for their own profit.
Together with the organizations SOS-SEATURTLES Switzerland / France, PRO-FAUNA Indonesia and OCCUPY FOR ANIMALS, I hope that your promises are being honored; that this situation in Bali is being brought under control and that the killing will stop - at last.
Then afterwards, I would love to visit the island and your country again and I will convince others to do the same.
Yours faithfully,
[signer's name]
Sources & References:
1. http://www.profauna.net/en/news/2011/against-the-illegal-trade-of-sea-turtle-eggs-in-kalimantan#.UUBjGRz_mSo
2. http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2001-04-17/news/0104170178_1_sea-turtles-turtles-are-considered-turtle-hunting
3. http://www.sos-seaturtles.ch/SOS_Bali_Ouota_English_1.htm
4. http://www.thejakartapost.com/bali-daily/2013-01-25/illegal-turtle-trade-returns-old-scheme.html
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VUC5vTQp-nM
6. http://www.thejakartapost.com/bali-daily/2013-06-21/pastika-pledges-stop-turtle-slaughter.html
1. http://www.profauna.net/en/news/2011/against-the-illegal-trade-of-sea-turtle-eggs-in-kalimantan#.UUBjGRz_mSo
2. http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2001-04-17/news/0104170178_1_sea-turtles-turtles-are-considered-turtle-hunting
3. http://www.sos-seaturtles.ch/SOS_Bali_Ouota_English_1.htm
4. http://www.thejakartapost.com/bali-daily/2013-01-25/illegal-turtle-trade-returns-old-scheme.html
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VUC5vTQp-nM
6. http://www.thejakartapost.com/bali-daily/2013-06-21/pastika-pledges-stop-turtle-slaughter.html