Legal Aspects & Detailed Analysis Regarding the Option of Exporting Toque Monkeys

Toque monkeys are known for damaging agricultural crops in many Sri Lankan villages. Several such cases were reported in the recent past as well, and due to this behavior of monkeys, there is an ongoing discussion on how to limit these crop damages. One of the remedial actions considered by the government was to explore the possibility of exporting monkeys to China.

The agricultural minister of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Amaraweera, earlier said that China requested 100,000 toque monkeys from Sri Lanka for their sanctuaries and zoos. However, the Chinese Embassy of Colombo issued a statement stating the Chinese government never made such a request. Later, it was learnt that the proposal was forwarded from a private company. So, there is an ongoing diplomatic dialogue over the issue. This article discusses the possible monkey exportation’s legal, ethical, and emotional aspects.

Through this article, you will get to know,

• The legal approval and legal situation of exporting endemic species like toque monkeys. 
• What can Sri Lankans do if a problem occurs with an exported animal in another country? 
• How the international parties legally intervene to protect animals against illegal things.
• Are there 3 million toques in Sri Lanka? Biological controlling methods of toque population.
• Ethical background of exporting animals, cultural impact, and the involvement of SL naturalists to minimize the Human-Monkey conflict. 

Background

Macaca sinica, known as the toque macaque, is a species of ‘Old World monkeys’ native to the island of Sri Lanka. Named for the whorl of hair, toque monkeys are commonly called “Rilawa” in Sri Lanka and are found in various habitats, including rainforests, dry forests, and urban areas.

Toque macaques are medium-sized monkeys, with adults typically weighing 4-8 kg. They are omnivorous, feeding on various foods, including fruits, leaves, insects, and small animals.

Toque macaques are social animals living in groups of up to several dozen individuals. They are also sometimes called ‘temple monkeys’ as many of them can be found around temple sites in Sri Lanka. Within these groups, females typically dominate males, and there is a strict social status hierarchy. They communicate with each other using a variety of vocalizations, gestures, and facial expressions.

Toque macaques are considered a vulnerable species due to habitat loss and fragmentation, as well as hunting for food and the pet trade. As a result, conservation efforts are underway to protect their populations and their habitats in Sri Lanka.

Legal Aspects on Tocque Macacque Export

We contacted senior environmentalist Dr. Jagath Gunawardena to learn the legal background of exporting Tocque monkeys. He is a lawyer, environmentalist, and educator based in Sri Lanka, well-known for his advocacy for wildlife conservation and environmental protection.

Our first question was, what is the law that applies when sending endemic animals abroad? Dr. Jagath Gunawardena says, “Whether it is endemic or not, it is protected by the Sri Lankan Flora and fauna protection ordinance.”   

An ordinance to provide for the protection, conservation, and preservation of the fauna and flora of Sri Lanka; for the prevention of the commercial exploitation of such fauna and flora; and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. You can refer to the flora and fauna protection ordinance here, Archived. Through this, we came to know that the right to live, protection, and prohibition of commercial misuse of every animal and plant living in Sri Lanka is provided by this Act.

Also, suppose by any chance these animals are sent to another country and have to face some issues such as a lack of protection or lack of proper facilities; then what happens, and can the SL government intervene?

Dr.Jagath Gunawardena explains, “We cannot exercise our jurisdiction in another country. That is something which is stated in Article 1 of the U.N. Convention,  that you can’t interfere in another country’s process through our detailed process unless there is a bilateral agreement that allows us to do certain things or if there is a multilateral agreement on wildlife such as CITES which provide certain pathways to protect fauna and flora worldwide. There is no other way to interfere once we export animals to other countries.” He added.

When considering CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, is an international agreement between governments. It aims to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species.

The trade is diverse, ranging from live animals and plants to various wildlife products derived from them, such as food products, exotic leather goods, timber, and medicines. Levels of exploitation of some animal and plant species are high, and the trade in them, together with other factors, such as habitat loss, can heavily deplete their populations and even bring some species close to extinction. Many wildlife species in trade are not endangered, but an agreement to ensure the sustainability of the trade is essential to safeguard these resources for the future.

However, in the toque case, these monkeys are on the endangered list, which means that species are considered to be at a very high risk of extinction in the wild. This categorization is done by “The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).” The IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria are intended to be an easily and widely understood system for classifying species at high risk of global extinction.

CITES 

The Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species binds the majority of the world’s countries, aiming to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species. One hundred eighty-four countries contribute to this, and Sri Lanka and China are also parties of CITES.

CITES is legally binding on the Parties. However, it does not take the place of national laws. Instead, it provides a framework to be respected by each Party, which has to adopt its own domestic legislation to ensure that CITES is implemented at the national level. Those are the legal situation of the CITES bonds.

Dr.Jagath further explains, “when we export animals, there is no need to look after them, because we normally export animal only for good purpose not for lab test or kind of human usage.” From this, we found that an animal is usually sent to another country for the benefit of that animal. Then, Dr. Jagath Gunawardena further explained that an animal is exported for their survival, like captive breeding or exchange animal in the zoo; even in that case, we want to consider things such as

§  Does the particular zoo has facilities to provide further well-being of the animal

§  Methods used to capture and release animals

§  Recipient environment and does the zoo has enough space and requirements for animal

In addition, their ability to provide these facilities is like things.

At the same time, another thing has been viral in social media and news. There is an unsustainable number of monkeys in Sri Lanka.

Are there really 3 million monkeys in Sri Lanka?

The Minister of Agriculture, Mahinda Amaraweera, said that around 3 million monkeys are living in Sri Lanka. However, according to Monkey experts and scientists worldwide and research, the number of monkeys is decreasing so fast that IUCN categorized them as an endangered species.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the monkey species of ‘gelada’ as the most populous monkey breed, with about 200,000 individuals. Therefore it’s doubtful that the number of Toque macaques could be closer to 3 million.

Even if we assume there are around 200,000 toque monkeys, which is also highly doubtful, if 100,000 of them are sent to China, Sri Lanka will be left with exactly half the amount since it will cause a severe environmental imbalance. Therefore, we asked Dr. Jagath whether sending these animals abroad without doing a proper survey is possible.

If we want to export an animal from Sri Lanka to another country, if that animal has been captured in the wild should know the situation of the particular species of Sri Lanka, whether it is endangered, critically endangered, or whatever the status is it simply vulnerable on near text threatened. The second thing is if there are specialized populations such as subspecies or localized subspecies. Because subspecies have the more significant potential to go extinct, Dr. Jagath added.

Also, removing a particular number of individuals hurts the ecosystem. Therefore, removing a large number of individuals have to be carefully investigated. Even the removal of a small number of individuals has to be carefully done. Because after that, breeding sites have to be carefully taken care of. These are the things we should initially know about the species and its habitat, Dr. Jagath Gunawardena says.

Furthermore, The forest population in Sri Lanka has been dramatically reduced in the last few decades, so the decrease in forest population seems to be the main factor in the loss of food and habitat of the toque monkeys. On the other hand, deforestation leads to climate change. Increasing forest population creates new habitats for monkeys and stops human-monkey conflict.

We looked into whether there were different methods to control the toque monkey population.

Some other options to control the toque monkey population

§  Contraception: This method involves the use of hormones or vaccines to control the breeding of monkeys. It can be an effective way to prevent the birth of unwanted offspring.

§  Sterilization: This is a surgical procedure that permanently removes the reproductive organs of the monkeys. It is a highly effective method for controlling population growth.

§  Relocation: Monkeys can be relocated to areas with less dense populations. This method can effectively reduce a particular area’s population but can also be costly and time-consuming.

§  Habitat modification: Habitat modification can include removing food sources or changing the environment to discourage monkeys from inhabiting a particular area.

It’s important to note that population control techniques must be carried out humanely and ethically to protect the monkeys and their habitats. It’s also important to consult with experts and local authorities to ensure that the chosen method is appropriate and effective for the specific species and environment.

Naturalists and Environmental organizations in Sri Lanka are requesting the government to prevent the plans to export toque monkeys. Many point out that monkey exportation is a short-term solution and would not serve the intended purpose, and the government needs to look at more sustainable solutions.

The Center for Environment and Nature Studies points out that the Sri Lankan government is going to sell India’s God to China. In ancient times, the Hindus and Tamils of Sri Lanka and the Hindus of India considered monkeys gods. Because of that, society has the motivation to stop harming monkeys and conserve them. However, since the Sri Lankan government is underestimating this cultural link also, the Center of Environment and Nature Studies has written a letter to the Indian High Commissioner to ask the Indian government to intervene in this matter.

However, the Chinese embassy in Sri Lanka has replied that their government did not get involved in any decision related to these toque monkeys. China is part of CITES and already adopted its wildlife protection law in 1988 said that the Chinese government always attaches great importance to wildlife protection and actively fulfills international obligations. However, environmentalists are still worried about the repercussions and say that the Sri Lankan government should give a proper answer to this.

There is a famous saying by Mahatma Gandhi, which is suitable for this situation, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animal are treated.” Therefore public, as well as environmentalists, are on the lookout for what future decisions the SL government would resort to in this regard, which has to be carefully analyzed before hastily moving into a decision that could have detrimental impacts on the entire ecosystem and worsen the human-monkey conflict.

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