“Oh, how cute, an orangutan in baby clothes, I have to like and share that right now” – what is portrayed on social media almost unnoticed by the public is neither cute nor worth sharing, but an actual exploitation and torture good-natured primates so tourists can take funny photos.
Although there is only one documented case in which an orangutan was apparently prostituted, this does not reduce the suffering that the animals otherwise have to endure.

Myth of orangutan brothels

The claim that there are entire orangutan brothels has been circulating since 2007, when Michelle Desilets, former director of the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation UK, in an interview about "Pony", a female orangutan who lives in a prostitute village in Borneo was found.

But since then the story has been inflated: at some point the prostitute village became a complete orangutan brothel, with the same photos of “Pony” being used over and over again as illustrations. On Facebook, there are very lurid stories about “zoophilistic horror houses of joy” in which “fornication, perversity and sodomy” prevail.

However, the detail of the descriptions is more a product of the imagination of the movement that is re-propagating the myth on Facebook , based on a single, documented case from 2002.

We now wanted to know in more detail what the alleged brothels and the “Pony” case were all about, so we contacted the association BOS Germany (BOS = Borneo Orangutan Survival), operator of the website orangutan.de , who kindly gave us very detailed information about it reported.

Below you can now read the story of “Pony”, as it was described to us by BOS Deutschland eV: How she was found, how she is doing today, and what suffering the primates actually still suffer today for “funny” photos and videos have to experience.

How was Pony found?

In 2002, the nature conservation agency BKSDA and the BOS Foundation in Central Kalimantan received reports of an orangutan being used as a prostitute in Kereng Pangi village in Central Kalimantan. When the rescue team arrived to pick up the animal, the owner refused to release it. The surrounding community also loudly rejected the team's arrival. After a long planning and coordination phase, the joint team of BKSDA and BOS Foundation managed to confiscate Pony on February 13, 2003, accompanied by the local police. Pony was immediately taken to BOS Rescue Center Nyaru Menteng.

The report initially stated that Pony had been sold as a prostitute by the owner of the house where she lived. After the rescue, efforts were made to confirm the story with the people and officials involved, including BKSDA personnel involved in the seizure of Pony in Kereng Pangi, but we were never able to verify the original report .

What was Pony's condition when he arrived at Nyaru Menteng?

Pony arrived in Nyaru Menteng on February 13, 2003 in poor condition. She weighed 42kg and was classified as obese by the medical team as she was only 6 years old at the time. Her hair was completely shaved and her skin was covered in mosquito bites and clearly irritated from her own scratching.

Medical examinations showed that Pony's vagina was slightly larger than normal, but the medical team could not find any signs of violence.

Was the owner of Pony convicted?

We never received any information that law enforcement took action against Pony's former owner.

How is Pony today?

Pony currently lives at Nyaru Menteng Socialization Complex. Her weight at the last weighing was 60 kg. She also has a good appetite.

How old is she?

She is now about 26 years old. She was about 6 years old when she was rescued.

Can pony be released back into the wild?

We have tried rehoming ponies on a pre-poaching island twice, first in Bangamat and then in Kaja. In both experiments, Pony did not show sufficient ability to forage for natural food and socialize with other orangutans. We have determined that Pony does not have the survival skills and social behavior necessary to survive in a natural habitat, even with additional support from our staff.

The situation of orangutans in Indonesia and Thailand

So even if Pony is the only known case of probable prostitution, that doesn't mean that the primates are otherwise doing quite well. So here are some facts:

  • We are not aware of any other cases of orangutan prostitution.
  • Loss of habitat, displacement, human-animal conflicts and illegal pet ownership are the reasons why orangutans have had to be taken into the BOS rescue centers in recent years.
  • The orangutan is protected in Indonesia. Keeping them as pets, killing them and, of course, any form of abuse are punishable.
    We like to compare the situation of orangutans with that of wolves or bears here in Europe. When wolves kill sheep or approach our houses, those affected quickly take up arms or call for shooting quotas.
  • The rural population in Indonesia is poor and depends on the income from their small agricultural areas or on the income from oil palm plantations. If an orangutan - whose rainforest habitat is becoming ever smaller - helps itself to its own harvest, which is important for survival, or looks for food on the plantations, it is perceived as a threat .
    (And unlike Europe, there is no financial compensation in Indonesia.)
  • significantly improve the protection of orangutans in recent years .
    So we, as well as the local nature conservation authorities and the police, are called to help when an orangutan appears in a village or a baby is found.
  • By the way: Orangutans from around the age of eight are never absolutely harmless .
    They are and remain wild animals that are around seven times as strong as humans when they are adults.
  • On the subject of go-go girls: We are not aware of any cases of this in Indonesia either.

    However, there are zoos and amusement parks in Thailand, such as Safari World Bangkok, where orangutans live in e.g. B. are tortured, humiliated, mistreated and paraded in boxing shows (including number girls). European tourists also attend such shows. BOS has already rescued almost 50 orangutans from Thai amusement parks. Some of them have now even been released into the wild. Most of the animals in these parks are now said to be offspring.
    The babies have to cuddle with tourists in cute baby clothes and pose for the camera.


    The larger animals are often trained by force for the shows. We are trying to put an end to these shows and free the orangutans, including with this petition, but also in other ways: https://www.orangutan.de/petitionen/sofortiger-stopp-der-orangutan- shows-in-thailand-and-cambodia/

Everyone can do something to end this suffering

  • Never go to shows like this ( which don't only exist in Asia )!
  • Do not take photos with wild animals!
  • Do not share, like or comment positively on photos on social media that show wild animals such as wild animals. B. Orangutans can be turned into anthropomorphized cuddly toys! Wild animals are not pets or cuddly objects, no matter how cute they are or how much you would like to hold them. It ALWAYS means torture for the animals, even if it doesn't look like it.
  • Orangutans don't wear clothes , they don't bathe in bathtubs or wading pools, they don't drive golf carts, etc... all of this is trained, unnatural behavior and torture.

Conclusion

There is only a single known case of probable orangutan prostitution from 2002/03.
Go-go girls, orangutans in baby clothes, orangutans as cuddly toys or show objects - they exist, and not just in Asia. And on social media, thousands of users give hearts and likes to such pictures and stories or pay a visit to such shows on their next vacation in Thailand.

So if you come across pictures like this on social media: don't like, don't share, don't comment with "Oh, how cute" and little hearts, but kindly but firmly point out that this is anything but cute, but rather commercial animal cruelty at the expense of Animals.

We would like to thank BOS Deutschland eV for the information provided!

Further information, photos and interview partners:

BOS Germany eV

Impact Hub Berlin, Rollbergstraße 28a, 12053 Berlin, Tel.: 030 890 60 76 – 0, www.orangutan.de


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