IN January last year, photos and reports showing the eye-watering treatment of orangutans and other animals at Kemaman Zoo in Terengganu made headlines.

The conditions seen in the reports were not new though. Animals at Kemaman Zoo have been kept in a poor condition for years and despite receiving flak a year ago, it appears so far that little has changed at the zoo.

When Kemaman Zoo was exposed last year, the Wildlife and Natural Parks Department (Perhilitan) dismissed all allegations of poor welfare of animals at the zoo.

In contrast, the Malaysian Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria (Mazpa) took action and suggested improvements to the zoo and we thank Mazpa for being transparent and sincere with its findings.

Since then, the zoo has made minimal changes at both orangutan enclosures but they are still insufficient to meet the intricate needs of captive orangutans.

According to a June 2018 news report, RM60 million was spent on expanding a state-owned zoo which is reportedly bleeding money. How much was spent to upgrade the existing shoddy state of animals?

The latest photos we received, which have been verified, show the continued substandard welfare conditions for orangutans with no sign of an enrichment programme in place.

Kemaman Zoo has two enclosures for its orangutans. The indoor enclosure consists of large and smaller concrete cages and they are almost barren and there is nothing for the orangutans to do.

The sight of the orangutans in the cages is a disgraceful one and will leave any zoo visitor to wonder why in this day and age, Malaysia still keeps orangutans in such manner. Orangutans are intelligent animals and poor captive situations like that at Kemaman Zoo can lead to psychological and physical problems. 

The outdoor enclosure needs to be worked on. We have been informed that it tends to flood when the zoo is inundated with rainwater, which may occur more often during the monsoon season in the east coast of the peninsula.

A staff member at the Kemaman town council said there is no proper moat drainage at the outdoor orangutan enclosure. We will leave for state officials to comment on this.

When the outdoor enclosure is overwhelmed with water, it is dangerous to let the orangutans out and this leaves them spending more time in the cages.

Water moats as barriers should be avoided in the first place, as they increase the risk of drowning, which happened to an orangutan at Lok Kawi Wildlife Park, Sabah, in the past.

All our emails to state officials and the zoo last year have had no replies. In June, Terengganu Menteri Besar Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar welcomed assistance for the zoo and despite this, state and zoo officials did not respond to our offer to meet and help. Clearly, the welfare of animals is not a concern of top zoo and state officials responsible for the zoo.

The sorry state of our orangutans and other wildlife at Kemaman Zoo needs to change. Instead of spending more money to expand the zoo and import animals, the state should spend on improving the welfare of existing animals.

We urge the public to boycott this zoo until vast changes have been made. We also ask the minister in charge Dr Xavier Jayakumar to help the animals. – January 22, 2019.

* Upreshpal Singh is director, Friends of the Orangutans (Malaysia).

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.