A rapid assessment on the trade in marine turtles in Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam Final Report December 2018 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMNTS TRAFFIC expresses its sincere gratitude to the following for supporting this research: Indonesia • Ronald Lilley • BKSDA (Nature Conservation Agency) in Bali, West Java, East Java, Makassar • Pak Made Kanta, Sarah Melania and Dodi (Bali Turtle Conservation and Education Centre, Serangan Island) • I Wayan Wiradnyana and Pak Agung (Bali Sea Turtle Society) • Harfiandri Damanhuri (Head of the Turtle Inforamation Centre in Universitas Bung Hatta, Padang) • PROFAUNA - Regional offices (Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi) • Dr Mirza D Kusrini (Department of Forest Resources Conservation & Ecotourism Faculty of Forestry, Bogor Agricultural University, West Java) • Dewi Damayanti, Bali • Khalis Dwi (Marine Science Department Padjadjaran University, Bandung, West Java) • Retno Kusuma Ningrum, Bali • Monika Ruwaimana • Daniela B. Cavallini • Maggie Muurmans, Pulau Banyak, North Sumatra • Nur Masyitha Nurdin (Conservation and Biodiversity Analysts of BPSPL Satker Makassar) • Andi Muhammad Ishak Yusma (Head of Program and Evaluation Section of BPSPL Satker Makassa • Mr. Edi and Mrs Mutmainah (BKSDA Makassar) Muhammad Amin (Head Section of 1st Region of GAKKUM (Balai Penegakan Hukum) KLHK Makassar) Malaysia • SEAlutions • Department of Fisheries Malaysia • Sandakan Municipal Council (In-person interview was conducted with the Council’s Head of Enforcement Unit) • WWF Malaysia (Gavin Jolis) • Kudat Turtle Conservation Society • University Malaysia Terengganu researchers Viet Nam • Intelligent Media • Education for Nature-Viet Nam for providing their market survey information for this study • Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development • Directorate of Fisheries Glenn Sant, Lauren Lopes, Richard Thomas, Rosa Indenbaum, Sarah Ferguson, Thomasina Oldfield, Christine Hoff, CMS, are thanked for reviewing earlier drafts of the report. Aqeela Abdul Jalil is thanked for developing the graphics and maps used in the report. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................... 5 1. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY .......................................................................................... 9 2. BACKGROUND AND HISTORY OF MARINE Turtle TRADE IN THE SOUTHEAST ASIA AND THE CORAL TRIANGLE .................................................................................................. 9 2.1 Marine turtle trade in Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam ....................................................... 10 3. POLICY AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK .............................................................................. 13 3.1 Global and Regional Frameworks ............................................................................................ 13 3.1.1 Indian Ocean Southeast Asian Marine Turtle Memorandum of Understanding (IOSEA Marine Turtle MoU) ................................................................................................................................... 13 3.1.2 Memorandum of Understanding on ASEAN Sea Turtle Conservation and Protection (ASEAN MoU) ............................................................................................................................................. 15 3.1.3 Memorandum of Agreement between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the Government of Malaysia on the Establishment of the Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area (TIHPA MoU) ................................................................................................................................. 15 3.1.4 Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security (CTI-CFF) ............................ 16 3.2 National Legislation ................................................................................................................ 17 3.2.1 Indonesia ....................................................................................................................................... 17 3.2.2 Malaysia ........................................................................................................................................ 18 3.2.3 Viet Nam ....................................................................................................................................... 21 4. METHODS .................................................................................................................. 22 4.1 Seizure analysis ...................................................................................................................... 23 4.2 Market surveys ....................................................................................................................... 24 4.3 Online surveys ........................................................................................................................ 27 5. RESULTS .................................................................................................................... 28 5.1 Marine Turtle Seizures ............................................................................................................ 28 5.1.1 Seizure Records and Commodities Seized .................................................................................... 28 5.1.2 Hotspots and Routes ..................................................................................................................... 32 5.2 Physical Market and Online Surveys ....................................................................................... 38 5.2.1 Indonesia ....................................................................................................................................... 38 5.2.2 Malaysia ........................................................................................................................................ 41 5.2.3 Viet Nam ....................................................................................................................................... 42 6. DISCUSSION ............................................................................................................... 44 6.1 Domestic Trade Dynamics ....................................................................................................... 44 6.1.1 Indonesia ....................................................................................................................................... 44 6.1.2 Malaysia ........................................................................................................................................ 48 6.1.3 Viet Nam ....................................................................................................................................... 53 6.2 Legal International Trade Transactions ................................................................................... 54 6.3 Illegal International Trade ....................................................................................................... 57 3 6.3.1 Indonesia ................................................................................................................................ 57 6.3.2 Malaysia ................................................................................................................................. 58 6.3.3 Viet Nam ................................................................................................................................ 59 6.4 Conservation Impact and Management of Marine Turtles ...................................................... 60 6.4.1 Indonesia ....................................................................................................................................... 60 6.4.2 Malaysia ........................................................................................................................................ 61 6.4.3 Viet Nam ....................................................................................................................................... 63 7 CONCLUDING REMARKS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .................................................. 64 7.1 Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 65 8 REFERENCES .............................................................................................................. 68 Annex I: Nesting and Foraging Grounds in Malaysia ........................................................... 72 Annex II: Seizure data and summary for Sabah between 1999 and 2017 ............................. 74 Annex III: List of stakeholders consulted in Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam in 2018 ....... 76 Annex IV: Seizure data for Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam between January 2015 and August 2018 .............................................................................................................. 78 Annex V: Marine Turtle Hatchery information for Indonesia 2018 ...................................... 86 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Six species of marine turtles are found in Southeast Asia. Generally, all six species are protected or regulated by national laws across the region. Furthermore, all marine turtle species (Family Cheloniidae and Dermochelys coriacea) are listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which prohibits the international trade of marine turtles, their parts and derivatives for commercial purposes.