Cipayung, Indonesia, 6th August 2002.

The Tiger Foundation is pleased to report that it has succeeded in its long standing effort to create a powerful and effective coalition to battle the enormous problem of rampant tiger poaching and endangered wildlife trade in Indonesia. For the first time, this group brings together under one umbrella virtually all the government agencies and NGOs that operate on the island of Sumatra, where the last 400 or so Sumatran tigers face imminent extinction. Members include park rangers, police, military, nature conservation agencies, and international conservation organizations. The mandate this coalition has given itself is simple but ambitious: To reverse the flood of endangered wildlife poaching and illegal trade, with particular emphasis on tigers.

The Advocacy Network for Sumatran tigers, rhinos and elephants (TRE), representing non-governmental conservation organizations in collaboration with the Indonesian government, declare their stand against Poaching and Illegal Trade of Sumatran Tigers. This declaration was made at the Workshop on Anti-Poaching and Illegal Trade of Sumatran Tigers and their Products, hosted by the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation (PHKA), the Advocacy Network for TRE, and The Tiger Foundation - Sumatran Tiger Trust partnership.

As a symbol of the seriousness of the participants, and in synchrony with the formal declaration of the workshop, a collection of endangered, stuffed Indonesian wildlife was ceremonially set-alight and burnt. Included in this were six Sumatran tigers, confiscated from private owners in the capital Jakarta and from towns in Sumatra. Valued at more than US$ 3,000 each, the televised burning of these stuffed tigers is expected to deliver a strong message to the public and, in particular, to the many illegal owners of such protected wildlife species. Poaching and illegal trafficking and possession of tigers, rhinos and elephants and their products will no longer be tolerated. In the days to follow the workshop focused specifically on developing recommendations and actions that will facilitate progress in preventing these illegal activities considered so damaging to Indonesia's wildlife.