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Separate Areas for People, Monkeys will help us co-exist

I wish to highlight an incident, with no intention of blaming either party, that shows the problem of

wild monkeys co-existing with humans in a modified natural environment. (“People who feed

macaques should be held accountable”; Nov 13) 

FROM WINNIE YEO BOON ENG - 15 NOVEMBER

I wish to highlight an incident, with no intention of blaming either party, that shows the problem of

wild monkeys co-existing with humans in a modified natural environment. (“People who feed

macaques should be held accountable”; Nov 13)  

On Saturday, an elderly man with a backpack fell off the boardwalk between the forest and the water

at MacRitchie Reservoir in an attempt to avoid monkeys that appeared to attack him. He had avoided

eye contact while walking towards them, as is advisable.

But after two of them approached him aggressively, he moved quickly to the edge of the walkway andmissed his footing. The monkeys might not have intended to attack him, but they may have been

attracted to his backpack, which could have contained food.

The forest is home to monkeys, but it has also been modified into an environment suitable for human

beings. Both parties have as much right to be there. However, peaceful co-existence is now

impossible.

The accident would not have happened if the territories for monkeys and humans were clearly

defined.

There should be signs to prohibit people from going into the deeper part of the forest, while monkeysshould not be permitted to roam the forest edge, which has been modified for human use.

If segregation can be achieved, then similar accidents can be prevented in future.

People Who Feed Macaques should be held accountable

The root of the macaque problem in the Central Catchment and Bukit Timah nature reserves is human

action. (“Behaviour modification proposed as solution to macaque problem”; Oct 9) 

FROM DIANA RAHIM - 

13 NOVEMBER

The root of the macaque problem in the Central Catchment and Bukit Timah nature reserves is human

action. (“Behaviour modification proposed as solution to macaque problem”; Oct 9) 

People who consciously break the law and feed the monkeys have caused the monkeys to alter their

natural foraging habits and become aggressive.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority stated that the killing of macaques is a “last resort”, but

people who have acted in those ways should be held accountable in this issue.

Such killings can be executed easily, without guilt, because the assumption is that human beings havethe moral authority to control the animal population for our own comfort.

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If, instead, we hold these monkeys in direct and equal consideration, the implications of culling them

would be serious. However, they are not seen as such.

This is an age-old tactic even among humans: If one convinces oneself that a group is not as civilised,

then one can justify any atrocity against them.

Whether Singaporeans believe these monkeys to be moral beneficiaries, moral agents or simply

unworthy of moral consideration, one must concede that humans have to assume at least partial

responsibility for a problem that is causing the monkeys unjust suffering.

I am thus grateful that the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society is doing its best to

educate the public regarding this issue and trying to avoid the killing of the long-tailed macaques.

To consent to the killings is not only unethical, but also impractical and lazy, considering that human

negligence has been a source of the problem.

Behaviour Modification Proposed as a Solution to Macaque Problem

SINGAPORE — To resolve the ongoing human-macaque conflict here, the Animal Concerns Research

and Education Society (ACRES) has proposed a method to manage the monkeys without having to cull

them.

BY SIAU MING EN - 

09 OCTOBER

SINGAPORE — To resolve the ongoing human-macaque conflict here, the Animal Concerns Research

and Education Society (ACRES) has proposed a method to manage the monkeys without having to cull

them.

Known as “behavioural modification”, ACRES said this programme would address the “root of the

problem” and offer a “long-term” solution to it. “The concept of the behavioural modification is really

getting the macaques to understand where their boundaries are. At this point, we humans have

invaded their territory, so we (have to) now try to show them, by using us humans as obstacles, that

they can’t cross beyond us,” said ACRES Chief Executive Louis Ng yesterday at the release of a rescued

macaque back into the wild.

The organisation’s new macaque rescue team —  which has only two full-time staff — is trained to

conduct the behavioural modification programme. Last month, it responded to about 30 macaque-

related calls through ACRES’ 24-hour Wildlife Rescue Hotline.

Between January and August this year, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) received about

1,460 instances of monkey-related feedback, a nearly 60-per-cent increase from last year’s figures.

Noting that most of the feedback was from residents near the Central Catchment and Bukit Timah

Nature Reserves, the AVA said over a hundred of those cases were related to “monkey aggression”. 

Monkeys can become aggressive when in search of food and may snatch belongings, chase

pedestrians, or injure children, the elderly or pets.

Opinions among residents towards the macaques in Lakeview Estate along Upper Thomson have been

divided. “In a way, the management is stuck in a predicament because some residents insist that we

release the monkeys when we catch them, (while) others want us to increase the number of catches

we make,” said Mr Albert Har, Estate Manager of Lakeview Management. 

When it comes to the culling of macaques, the AVA said humane euthanasia was its “last resort”, and

added that the release of macaques into the forests would not resolve issues of monkey aggression,

as those accustomed to human food would continue to venture out of the forests. “Indiscriminate

release of aggressive/nuisance-causing wildlife back into the environment merely transfers the

problem from one estate to the next,” said the AVA.  

The authority said it has received ACRES’ proposal and will be studying its “feasibility and

effectiveness”. 

In July, a Sunday Times report said almost 360 macaques were killed by the AVA in the first half of thisyear — an estimated 20 per cent of the total macaque population in Singapore.