Malaysia is hub of illegal timber trade, report alleges

5 February 2004

Malaysia is hub of illegal timber trade, report alleges

By Vanessa Houlder in London

Malaysia was accused yesterday of being at the centre of a multi-million-dollar web of illegal trading in ramin, a rare type of Indonesian timber.

Undercover investigations exposed "wholesale laundering of ramin through Malaysia on an unprecedented scale", according to a report by the Washington-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and Telepak, an Indonesian environment group.

"This shocking evidence highlights Indonesia's continuing failure to bring to justice timber barons who supply and transport this illegal timber and Malaysia's callous complicity in protecting its own ramin-processing industry," said the report.

The Malaysian Timber Council, which represents the timber industry, rejected the allegations as "grossly overstated".

It added: "We can't deny that some smuggling goes on. But we are doing our best to stop it.

"The non-governmental organisations should recognise that we are making some progress."

The report alleges that some traders and officials in Malaysia profit from fraudulently selling huge quantities of smuggled Indonesian ramin that are described as being of Malaysian origin.

The scale of the smuggling uncovered by the environment groups represents more than double the amount of ramin Malaysia can produce itself each year. It accused Malaysia of failing to take sufficient action because of its desire to protect its own ramin-processing industry.

As its own forests have dwindled, its huge timber industry has become ever more reliant on imports of illegally logged Indonesian wood, it said.

The blond-coloured tropical hardwood, which is prized for its appearance and easy-working properties, is destined for markets in the European Union, US and Japan, where it is used in a range of consumer products such as nursery furniture and pool cues.

The environment groups called on Japan, the EU and the US to scrutinise more carefully the ramin re-exported to their markets by China and Malaysia. At present no ramin on the market can be trusted, they said.

Ramin has been classified by the World Conservation Union as "vulnerable to extinction in the wild".

It is found in the rapidly dwindling peat-swamp forests of Indonesia and Malaysia, which is the natural habitat of many rare plants and animals, including the endangered orang-utan.