Claims To Do 453 Operations Prevent Plant And Animal Smugglers, Commitment Ministry Of Environment And Forestry For The Sanctions Of The Violators

Illustration. Panthera pardus melas or leopard, secured from the perpetrators of the illegal animal trade. (Between)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) is committed to imposing strict sanctions on every perpetrator of smuggling wild plants and animals that are protected by law.

Director General of Law Enforcement of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Rasio Ridho Sani, said that imposing sanctions on perpetrators of protected plant and animal crimes is the government's commitment to protect the wealth of biodiversity belonging to the Indonesian nation.

"Our consistency in securing and enforcing the crime of wild plants and animals is very important to ensure biological wealth as a comparative advantage for Indonesia that is not owned by other countries to remain sustainable," he said in his statement, Wednesday, February 15, as reported by Antara.

Rasio said that his party continues to strengthen various collaborations with law enforcement officers, such as the TNI-Polri, Customs and Excise, the Maritime Security Agency, the Agricultural Quarantine Agency, BKSDA, PPATK, and the prosecutor's office. The cooperation was carried out as an effort to protect the sources of biological wealth in Indonesia.

In addition to strengthening cooperation, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry also utilizes various technologies, including Cyber Patrol and Intelligence Center to oversee the trade of protected plants and animals by law.

The Ministry of Environment and Forestry claims to have carried out 1,915 environmental security operations and forest areas in Indonesia, 453 wild plant and animal operations that have been carried out by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry together with other ministries and institutions, and 1,348 criminal cases and regulations. corporate and individual crimes have been brought to court.

The latest case handled by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry is the ownership and transportation of protected animals without permission by a Vietnamese citizen with the initials LVH who is 40 years old.

The perpetrator is the captain of the MV Royal 06 ship with the Vietnamese flag and owner of protected animals from Indonesia which is planned to be smuggled into Vietnam.

LVH was successfully secured in the Pontianak Lantamal XII patrol in the waters of the Pontianak River, West Kalimantan, on December 20, 2022. During the patrol, officers found 36 wildlife protected by law.

Dozens of protected wildlife are 16 cages, 10 soft old brother birds, three chef's old brother birds, three white old brother birds, three yellow watcher birds, and one king's old brother bird.

The animals were purchased from several people. Investigators are still investigating where the perpetrators got the animals, including exploring the possibility of a protected cross-border trade network.

Penegakan Hukum Penyidik KLHK Wilayah Kalimantan telah menetapkan pelaku berinisial LVH sebagai tersangka dengan ancaman kurungan penjara maksimal lima tahun dan denda paling tinggi Rp100 juta.

Evidence in the form of processed animals has been released into their habitat through coordination with the West Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA). Meanwhile, protected birds are currently still being entrusted to the Planet Indonesia Foundation (YPI) to be treated while waiting for release to their home habitats in Papua and Maluku.

The ratio of emphasizing smuggling cases carried out by foreign nationals is a threat to the sustainability of biodiversity and an ecosystem that is very important to the life of the Indonesian nation.

According to him, smuggling protected animals is a serious crime, across countries and is a concern for the international community.

"We must stop this crime and take firm action. The perpetrator must be punished maximally so that it has a deterrent effect and is fair," he concluded.