Animal enthusiast: Arawin posing with a Komodo Dragon.
PETALING JAYA: Is Malaysia becoming an unwitting illegal supplier of reptiles and amphibians for India’s booming new trend of exotic pet ownership?
This poser comes following three cases of a large number of exotic pets hand-carried by India-bound air passengers escaping detection at KL International Airport (KLIA), only to be uncovered by the Indian authorities.
In the most recent case on July 29, 47 snakes and two lizards were smuggled out by a male Indian national from KLIA to India.
'CLICK TO ENLARGE'However, the reptiles – stored in plastic food containers – were seized by Indian Customs officials at the Trichy International Airport in southern India.
About three weeks earlier, two men – both Indian nationals – were caught at the same airport with 6,850 live red-eared slider turtles in their checked-in luggage on arrival from KLIA. The baby turtles were concealed in small boxes.
In April, a Malaysian woman, who departed from KLIA, was found with 22 snakes of various species in her baggage after she arrived at Chennai International Airport, also in southern India.
So, how did such a large number of snakes of almost-adult size escape detection by scanners and the auxiliary police personnel manning them?
Exotic pet breeder Arawin Raj Pillai said smugglers are constantly coming up with new ways of concealing the creatures such as wrapping them up in aluminium foil to avoid being discovered by the airport authorities.
Arawin, owner of the store Exotic by ARP, said there is a high demand for exotic pets in India, especially reptiles such as ball pythons, but strict laws there prohibiting the import of such animals have led to acts of smuggling becoming rife.
He noted that the Indian market is huge due to its population and the reptiles can fetch more than twice the price they may command locally.
He said Indian syndicates prefer smuggling exotic pets from Malaysia and Thailand as they can be sourced at lower prices and both countries have a short flight time to India.
“Exotic pet ownership is a new trend in India but the country has very strict laws on the import of wildlife, especially reptiles. Having such tough laws is good but it can backfire if it makes it impossible to even own certain exotic pets. This opens up a market for illicit trade and smuggling.
“When exotic pet dealers are inconvenienced with too much hassle, such as getting multiple permits and other documentation, they will opt for the easy way of sourcing for these pets even if it is illegal,” he told The Star.
Though he supports stern enforcement, Arawin said the import of exotic pets should be allowed if the animals are bred ethically and not poached.
He added that the pythons and turtles smuggled into India are most likely sourced from illegal breeders in Malaysia.
“At one time, Malaysia was known for having the world’s most notorious exotic animal smuggler.
Darren“All that changed and today, Perhilitan (Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia) is very consistent and strict in its enforcement.
“This has brought a sharp decline in the smuggling of protected wildlife and illegal breeding activities,” said Arawin, who is a Perhilitan-licensed ball python breeder.
Under the Wildlife Protection Act of India, those found owning protected animals or exotic pets without permits or licences face a maximum jail term of seven years and a fine up to 25,000 rupees (about RM1,400).
Animal curator and conservationist Darren Chow agreed that the new trend in India has led to exotic pets being sourced from Malaysia due to lower prices.
“Smuggling also avoids red tape. By evading the long process and cost of applying for import permits and ownership licence, the smugglers get to earn bigger profits,” he said.
He, however, said the smuggled exotic pets are bred to cater for the pet market and not poached from the wild.
Although he agreed that smuggling them out of the country is wrong, Chow said the pets are domesticated and rearing them is not exploitative of wildlife or a threat to the ecology.
“They have gone through many generations of breeding and since they are domesticated, they might not survive if released into the wild as they have shed their survival instincts,” he said.
Chow also pointed out that wildlife trafficking activities in Malaysia have vastly shrunk over the years and the market has shifted to China and Thailand.
On Oct 5 last year, an air cargo parcel of about 600 exotic animals from Malaysia was seized in Mumbai, India.
The prohibited animals, which were brought in under the guise of aquarium fish and worth almost RM1.7mil, comprised various ornamental fish, turtles, tortoises, pythons, iguanas and lizards. More than 100 of the animals died during shipment.
