Indonesia returns 20 green sea turtles to the ocean after Bali smuggling raid

SERANGAN ISLAND, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian authorities on the tourist island of Bali released 20 protected green sea turtles back into the ocean Tuesday after they were found and seized on an empty boat seemingly abandoned by wildlife smugglers fleeing a police raid.

Officers conducted final checks on the turtles at a conservation center on Serangan Island, also known as Turtle Island, in southern Bali. They then carefully lifted the turtles using blue cloths and transported them by small truck to the shoreline.

Marine police officers in Bali on Saturday foiled an attempt to smuggle 22 green sea turtles, known by the scientific name Chelonia mydas, in the waters off Serangan Island after receiving a report from residents who suspected sea turtle smuggling activity in the area.

Two of the 22 turtles are still sick and need to be treated before they can also be released, Gusti Agung Purnama Wirahadi from the Bali Water and Air Police said Tuesday.

All of the turtles, which are protected species in Indonesia, were found alive on the boat, but the suspected smugglers had already fled the scene by the time officers arrived.

“We hope that no one will dare to capture, keep, or trade these protected species anymore,” Wirahadi said.

Turtle species in Indonesia have been legally protected under conservation and fisheries laws since 1990. A 2018 Environment Ministry regulation further clarified protections for the six species of sea turtles found in the country’s waters. Additional government regulations also prohibit their trade.

According to a 2022 global study by researchers at Arizona State University, the green sea turtle accounted for 56% of sea turtle killings in the 30-year period to 2020.

Bali was once a major hub for green sea turtle trafficking, driven in part by the historical use of turtle meat in offerings in Balinese Hinduism, the predominant religion on the island of about 4.5 million people.

In June, authorities in Bali foiled an attempt to illegally trade 21 protected green sea turtles during a raid on the island’s Pegametan coast and arrested a 67-year-old man suspected of storing the protected animals before they were distributed for sale.

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Associated Press writer Edna Tarigan in Jakarta contributed to this report.