Ban the Sale of Fruit Bats by Indonesian Street Vendors

In Sumatra, Indonesia, fruit bats are caged and sold by street vendors, to be consumed as a supposed cure for asthma, according to Traditional Medicine.

Fruit bats are becoming harder to find  The loss will be significant if these bats are eliminated, because of their enormous value as pollinators of numerous species of trees, many of which provide economically important fruit such as  many local fruit species like durian, bananas, dates, figs and mangos.

We ask the government of Indonesia to ban the sale of fruit bats. Nine species of fruit bats have been placed with Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora on Appendix I, - species that are threatened with extinction and are or may be affected by trade.

Mr. Dana A. Kartakusuma
Ministry of Environment
JI. D. I. Panjaitan Kebon Nanas
Jakarta - 13410
Indonesia
Tel: + 62 21 851 7148, + 62 21 8590 4937
Fax: + 62 21 851 7147, + 62 21 859 04937
EMail: dana@menlh.go.id, danakartakusuma@gmail.com

Mr. Salma Al Farisi
Deputy Chief of Mission
Embassy of Indonesia
2020 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC - 20036
USA
Tel: 1 (202) 775-5216