Let Jera! Activists Ask For Heavy Punishment For Those Who Caused Death Of Tigers In Aceh

ACEH - Environmental activists from the Suar Galang Keadilan (LSGK) Institute for Justice (LSGK) have asked that the perpetrators of the death of three Sumatran tigers (Panthera tigris sumatrae) in East Aceh should be given severe punishment.

LSGK Program Manager, Missi Muizzan said that his party appreciated the performance of law enforcement officers in the local district in handling the cases of the deaths of the three protected animals.

"LSGK hopes that the perpetrators can be tried objectively in order to fulfill a sense of justice for all parties for the deaths of three Sumatran tigers due to this snare," said the Mission in Banda Aceh, Antara, Wednesday, July 27.

Missi explained that in April 2022, three Sumatran tigers died from being caught in a pig's snares in the forest area of the PT Aloer Timur HGU oil palm plantation in Sri Mulya Village, Peunaron District, East Aceh Regency. The three wild animals were found in two adjacent locations, in the condition that their bodies had become carcasses.

A few days after the discovery, East Aceh Police personnel managed to arrest two residents suspected of being the perpetrators. During the arrest, the police also secured evidence.

"The police secured evidence in the form of snaring equipment used by the perpetrators to carry out their activities, and at the suspect's cottage, several pieces of kuau king feathers were also secured," he said.

LSGK said the arrest of the alleged perpetrator had fulfilled the elements of a criminal act as regulated in Article 1 number 20 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The East Aceh Police have also transferred the criminal case to the East Aceh District Prosecutor's Office, and the prosecutor's office has also transferred the case to the District Court for trial.

"Hopefully this is the last case to occur in the jurisdiction of East Aceh, considering that the Sumatran tiger population is decreasing and is in danger of extinction," he said.

LSGK is optimistic about the commitment of law enforcement officers to uphold justice for the two suspects for the alleged crime that caused the deaths of the three individual Sumatran tigers.

Previously, the Aceh Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) stated that three Sumatran tigers were found entangled in the PT Aloer Timur HGU plantation area in Sri Mulya Village, Peunaron District, East Aceh.

Head of the Aceh BKSDA Agus Arianto said the Aceh BKSDA immediately dispatched medical personnel to the location where the protected animal was found dead. The medical team immediately performed a necropsy or surgery on the carcasses of the three tigers.

"The Aceh BKSDA strongly condemns this incident. We will cooperate with law enforcement authorities to thoroughly investigate the deaths of the three tigers if the necropsy process finds elements of intent," said Agus Arianto.