The return took place on Thursday as part of a joint effort between the two countries to combat the illegal wildlife trade.
Three trafficked Sumatran orangutans were returned from Thailand to Indonesia on Thursday as part of a joint effort between the two countries to combat the illegal wildlife trade.
Nobita and Shizuka, both 7, and Brian, 5, lived in a nature reserve in the western Thai province of Ratchaburi.
There are no other trafficked orangutans currently in the custody of Thai authorities, officials said.
Rachmat Budiman, Indonesia’s ambassador to Thailand, thanked authorities in both countries for the repatriation and said he had “mixed feelings”. He said he was happy that the orangutans were back in their natural habitat but sad for the Thai keepers who had bonded with the animals for several years.
The primates were transported from the sanctuary to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport before being put on a plane to Jakarta. Thai authorities said Indonesia covered the cost of transport and health examinations for the animals.
They will be sent to a rehabilitation center in Sumatra before being released into their natural habitat, Rachtmat Budiman said.
The repatriation is “important” because it shows the commitment of the two countries to collaborate in combating the illegal wildlife trade, said Athapol Charoenchansa, director-general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Conservation plants in Thailand. He says he hopes the transfer will raise awareness about wildlife conservation in the region.
Thai and Indonesian authorities fed the animals bananas and dragon fruit while they were displayed inside their crates at Bangkok airport before being taken onto the plane.
In 2016, Nobita and Shizuka were just a few months old when they were found during a sting operation in Bangkok by wildlife officers, who had agreed to buy the pair online for $20,000 . So as babies, they were named after characters from the popular Japanese cartoon Doraemon. Photos of them squeezing into a basket in the back of a taxi went viral at the time.
Brian, another male orangutan, was rescued from traffickers and sent to Thai wildlife officers.
Bangkok has returned 74 orangutans to Indonesia since 2006 in six transfers, including three on Thursday. In 2020, two orangutans named Ung-Ing and Natalie were repatriated.
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora – CITES – prohibits international trade in orangutans. They are only found in the forests of Sumatra and Borneo, but their habitat is decreasing due to increasing agricultural land use, making them more vulnerable to poaching. The International Union for Conservation of Nature considers orangutans critically endangered.
Orangutans are often sold in the pet trade for display in zoos and other attractions.
