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One of many malnourished and injured turtles being held during June
1997 in pens in Tajung, Bali, only one km. from the popular Nusa Dua tourist
resorts. This one showed evidence of injures including an open head injury
normally a result of appalling treatment in the movement and transportation
of the turtles to the slaughtering grounds in Bali. |
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One of many Turtle holding pens in Tajung, Bali. Some pens were
holding up to 70 plus battered, dehydrated, and starving Green sea turtles.
They are subjected to unimaginable pain and torture up to weeks before
finally being slaughtered for consumption by the mostly Far eastern tourists
visiting Bali. |
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The Tajung, Bali, holding and slaughtering grounds were holding
over three hundred Green sea turtles on June 16, 1997, to be slaughter
within the next two weeks, according to the Maduran (Java),'King of Turtles',
Rasta Pak Hasan. About 2/3 boats arrive to Tajung a week with stacks of
turtles (up to eight in a stack). Many arriving dead already, the dead
ones still usable for the mostly ignorant consumer. |
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Bunches of helplessly mistreated Green sea Turtles of all sizes,
victims of the commercially increasing trade, taken from beaches during
mating season, open seas by net traps, and ,or, out of coral reef areas
for the inevitable slaughter. The future of the Indonesian sea Turtles
and Coral reefs look very bleak. The ancient mariner becoming extinct as
over 15,000 are slaughtered per year in Bali alone. |
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Underpaid butchers display their power over the twelve helplessly
tied and battered turtle (holes drilled through the front fins tied together
with cord in the appropriate praying position). These the next to be slaughtered
regardless of specific government guidelines and quotas. |
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The slaughtering grounds in Tajung, Nusa Dua, Bali, where approximately
15,000 turtles are unabatedly slaughtered each year, despite government
set quotas of 4,000. Up to July 1997, most government guidelines
and laws concerning this quasi Traditional trade had been ignored to outright
broken, as was the case on June 16, when twelve unregistered turtles, some
over 90 cm shell length, one under 60 cm. shell length were slaughtered.
This seems to be the daily routine as long as trade continues as is. |
