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Ignorance no excuse for eating turtle eggs

  • Publication Date | November 18, 2015
  • Document Type | Letter to the Editor
  • Programmes | Marine & Fisheries
  • Issues | Biodiversity, Fisheries
  • Tags | Sabah, turtle eggs
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Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) finds the response from the Rural and Development Minister on the serving of turtle eggs at a function in a restaurant in Sabah baffling.

If the plate of turtle eggs had not been included in the list of menu  would it be served to the diners seated with the Minister  or is it a complimentary dish from  the restaurant?  

Why would the dish make it to the dinner table if indeed no one is interested in consumption of  the turtle eggs? Is the turtle egg delicacy  placed there as an exhibit  or as an appetiser to whet the appetite of those present for  the dinner?  It is most strange that a dish is ordered without anyone tucking into the eggs.     

This is not the first time  an incident of this nature took place.   SAM noted that as far back as   March 2009  law enforcers from both Bukit Aman and Sarawak police were caught with their pants down serving  an illegal delicacy during one of their official dinner functions.  These are not members of the public but senior police officers who are entrusted with safeguarding the law of a country.  An inconceivable  act coming from  the very institution that is tasked to protect and uphold the law.  Despite reports that this was a terrible practice, no one was brought to book.    

What hope do these turtles have of multiplying their numbers if man continues to gobble up  their eggs?  Exploited for decades turtle populations have reached critical levels, and continued  ‘eggs ploitation’  will certainly lead to their demise.  The sight of turtles swimming to our shores does not mean that all is well and that it is alright to eat their eggs.  

It takes 20 to 50 years for an adult turtle to  mature before they can reproduce.  When they die and if all their eggs are consumed, the entire population will be gone.  They are also faced with a number of extinction threats. They are  hunted for their meat and shell, killed through pollution and illegal trapping by foreign fishing vessels,  drowned in fishing nets,  destruction of  nesting sites  because of shoreline development, all leading to low survival rate. And like the control on ivory trade , the consumption of turtle eggs should also  be banned.    

Its ironic that while it is against the Fisheries Act to kill turtles as they are endangered, it is perfectly legal to take their eggs.  Currently state laws governing sea turtles are fragmented, not uniform and state laws do not impose a total ban on the sale and consumption of turtle eggs.  Even these laws have poor and undeveloped provisions pertaining to the protection of turtle habitats. Besides states do not  place turtle protection and conservation as a priority.    

As such there must be uniformity of state laws which are  often  met with resistance and lukewarm response from state governments.  Laws are certainly needed as existing state laws are inadequate in turtle conservation quest.  

SAM calls on the Government to impose an outright ban on the sale and consumption of turtle eggs through adequate punishment, the imposition of fine and imprisonment for selling, and fine and jail sentence for those buying and consuming them.   

Malaysia needs to  compromise on its policy in saving turtles from extinction by not allowing traders to sell turtle eggs which will only encourage neighbouring countries to go on a hunting spree for turtle eggs to be sold in Malaysia.  At the same time we are also encouraging turtle eggs from other countries to flood our market thus defeating our effort to save turtles.    

The government should  put a stop to this blatant flouting  of the    conservation policy of our endangered species by all means. The law against possession, harvesting and consumption of protected wildlife such as turtles and their eggs must be observed by everyone and Ministers and policy makers have no excuse to dismiss the law by claiming ignorance.   

S M Mohamed Idris
President

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Testimonials

Sahabat Alam Malaysia adalah satu badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) yang telah sekian lama berjuang mempertahan kelestarian alam. Ia juga mendidik masyarakat tentang pentingnya kebersamaan dalam pemikiran dan tindakan agar alam ini dapat kita wariskan kepada generasi hadapan dalam keadaan yang elok dan terpelihara. Dalam pada itu juga SAM giat membantu golongan nelayan pantai dalam memperjuangkan hak-hak mereka sehinggalah tertubuhnya Persatuan Pendidikan dan Kebajikan Nelayan Pantai Malaysia (JARING). Nelayan pantai sepenuh masa ini dididik oleh SAM sehingga mereka mampu memainkan peranan sebagai pemimpin nelayan yang meneruskan kesinambungan memperjuangkan hak-hak nelayan pantai lainnya. Sebagai contoh SAM telah berjaya menyedarkan masyarakat nelayan keperluan menjaga hutan paya bakau untuk kebaikan hasil tangkapan nelayan itu sendiri.
Jamaluddin Mohamad Bualik
Jamaluddin Mohamad BualikPersatuan Pendidikan dan Kebajikan Jaringan Nelayan Pantai Malaysia (JARING)
During the 1980s, I used to read about the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) in the news. After retirement, some time in 2001, while lazing around, I read news about the construction of a carbon in leach plant using sodium cyanide to extract gold in Bukit Koman. My friends and I visited CAP and we were introduced to SAM and her legal team. We discussed the details of filing a case against the gold mining company and the department of environment with Ms Meenakshi Raman and her legal team. That was the beginning of a beautiful friendship between lawyers from SAM and many of us from Bukit Koman. We had many ups and downs in our struggle to shut down the gold mine that was causing a nuisance in our village. But, as a community we never gave up because SAM had our backs.
Hue Fui How
Hue Fui HowSecretary, Bukit Koman Ban Cyanide in Goldmining Action Committee (BCAC)
Sahabat Alam Malaysia adalah sebuah NGO yang memperjuangkan nasib masyarakat luar bandar khasnya. SAM menerima aduan-aduan masyarakat dan menyelesaikan masalah yang dihadapi. SAM telah mewujudkan ramai aktivis-aktivis sosial dan alam sekitar. Pada era 1980 dan 90an SAM sangat dihormati oleh masyarakat dan agensi kerajaan. Apabila media sosial menguasai maklumat maka SAM pun terkesan dan masalah masyarakat terus disalurkan dengan pelbagai cara. SAM perlu mewujudkan aktivis-aktivis pelapis yang muda untuk terus membantu masyarakat. SAM juga perlu membuat perubahan supaya banyak turun kelapangan dan jangan mengharapkan laporan media sahaja. Tingkatkan prestasi sebagaimana pada zaman kegemilangan SAM di era 80-90an.
Che Ani Mt Zain
Che Ani Mt Zain
SAM taught me the importance of social activism and the role it plays in upholding the rights of people and the protection of the environment. In my experience, SAM has never hesitated to speak up in defence of people and their environment, and has gone the extra mile to champion their rights, by helping communities take their battles to the higher ups and even to the courts.
Jessica Binwani
Jessica BinwaniPublic/Private Interest Lawyer
Semenjak kami kenal SAM, banyak pengalaman dan pengetahuan yg kami dapat. Kami telah belajar cara membuat baja asli daripada SAM. Semenjak itu, bermulalah minat kami dalam aktiviti pertanian. Dengan memperolehi kemahiran dalam membuat baja asli dan penanaman lestari, kami juga telah dapat menambahkan pendapatan sampingan kami. Ini lebih baik daripada tanah kami terbiar dan tidak diusahakan. Terima kasih SAM kerana sudi memberi bantuan dan tunjuk ajar kepada Persatuan kami.
Chedo Anak Nyuwen
Chedo Anak NyuwenPersatuan Penduduk Sg Buri, Bakong, Marudi
My journey with SAM started when her community organisers took me to the meet the paddy farmers of Kedah, connecting my growing interest in environmental law with our people who struggle to work the land in the face of pollution, replacement of traditional seeds with commercial hybrids and their accompanying chemical package of fertilisers and weedicides. I then had the honour to work with SAM in the struggle for the rights of the native communities of Sarawak, in defence of their forests from massive logging and destructive mega-projects. In every issue that SAM takes up, she combines rigorous research with the realities and voices of the communities to advocate for policies and laws that care for people and nature. From the courts to the elected legislators to policy makers and implementers and to the United Nations, SAM walks side by side with the communities in Malaysia. How can I not be inspired by the vision and passion of the generations of women and men who coalesce to form SAM?
Chee Yoke Ling
Chee Yoke Lingstudent of SAM, Executive Director of Third World Network, SAM’s sister organisation

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Sahabat Alam Malaysia (Headquarters)
No. 1, Jalan Joki, 11400 Penang,
Malaysia
Tel: +604 827 6930
Fax: +604 827 6932

Sahabat Alam Malaysia (Marudi Office)
129A, First Floor,
Jalan Tuanku Taha,
P.O.Box 216,
98058 Marudi, Baram, Sarawak,
Malaysia
Tel & Fax: +6085 758 973

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