He said if immediate action is not taken, Malaysia faced the risk of seeing the Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni) going extinct.
“More worrying is the fact that this iconic species of the country may be lost forever,” he said in a statement after chairing the first meeting of the National Tiger Conservation Task Force (MyTTF) in Putrajaya today.
The Malayan tiger is featured on the coat of arms of Malaysia and in the crest of states, government ministries, departments and agencies.
The meeting was attended by menteris besar Aminuddin Harun (Negeri Sembilan), Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail (Pahang) and Amirudin Shari (Selangor), and state executive council members representing the menteris besar of Kelantan, Terengganu, Johor, Kedah and Perak.
At the federal level, energy and natural resources minister Takiyuddin Hassan, finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz and representatives of the relevant ministries, departments and agencies were present.
Ismail said the dwindling Malayan tiger population was due to loss of habitat and food sources, resulting from land use changes, hunting and illegal trade in animals, as well as the spread of the canine distemper virus.
He said today’s meeting agreed with the “Strategic Actions for Conservation of Harimau Malaya” for a 10-year period beginning this year, through the implementation of six approaches, including “boots on the ground” joint operations by the wildlife department (Perhilitan), police, the armed forces and the Orang Asli community.
He said MyTTF also agreed to preserve and strengthen tiger habitats through sustainable land use management and stop encroachment and illegal hunting.
“Another measure agreed to is to increase the forest cover in Peninsular Malaysia from 43.41% now to 50% by 2040, in line with the Fourth National Physical Plan.
“(It also calls for) empowering effective governance through the establishment of the Harimau Malaya Conservation Unit under Perhilitan, the Wildlife Crimes Bureau under PDRM and strengthening the National Wildlife Forensics Laboratory as a centre of excellence for ex-situ conservation of Harimau Malaya,” he added.
Ismail said MyTTF also agreed to the use of innovative financial instruments to supplement the existing Ecological Fiscal Transfer for Biodiversity Conservation financial incentive and implementation of the tiger habitat accreditation scheme, apart from holding “Save Harimau Malaya” campaigns to boost awareness and involvement of strategic partners.
He said efforts already undertaken to protect the Malayan tiger included amendments to the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010, which were passed by Parliament on Dec 21 last year to provide for more effective enforcement of wildlife conservation laws.
Under the amendments, the maximum fine was raised from RM500,000 to RM1 million and the maximum jail term was increased from 10 years to 15 years for perpetrators of wildlife crimes.
“Apart from this, there are new provisions for action to be taken against individuals who advertise the sale of wildlife online,” he said.