The population of critically endangered Mekong River Dolphins – Irrawaddy Dolphins – in the Cheuteal trans-boundary pool between southern Laos and northern Cambodia has shrunk by 50 percent this year and the population is functionally extinct in Laos.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) survey teams from Laos and Cambodia recently conducted a dolphin abundance survey and confirmed the current number and breeding status of the dolphins in the trans-boundary pool.
The survey teams reported that the group has now shrunk to just three individuals from six earlier this year. There is now little hope for a reversal of the situation, as the small population is no longer viable.
Functional extinction results when there are too few potential breeding pairs available to ensure the survival of the population, they said.
The population of Irrawaddy Dolphins is functionally extinct in the near future if we don’t have good measures to protect them, WWF-Laos Southern Provinces Coordinator Ms Amphone Phommachak said.
In an interview with Vientiane Times yesterday, Ms Amphone stressed that the use of gillnets, especially unmanned gillnets, is thought to be one of the main reasons for the demise of the dolphins. Gillnets are vertical panels of netting set in a straight line across a river to catch fish. Being large aquatic mammals, Mekong River dolphins, as well as other endangered aquatic species, are often caught in gillnets, and drown as a consequence.
The use of gillnets in the Mekong River is prohibited in Cambodia where there are an estimated 80 dolphins but not in Laos.
Only the actual deep pool off Hangsadam village in Khong district, Champassak province, where the dolphins are, is protected. Gillnets are, however, used directly outside of the pool where the dolphins often swim and risk being trapped.
The WWF calls for an immediate ban on all gillnets for a two kilometre radius around the Cheuteal pool (4 km in the rainy season) and increased enforcement against violators.
The WWF also asks for increased enforcement of gillnet bans in other Mekong River dolphin pools to protect the remaining dolphin population.
The alarming decline of Mekong Irrawaddy dolphins in Laos that we have witnessed this year is tragic. At this stage, we fear that in a year or two, there may be no more dolphins in Laos, the WWF Conservation Director for the Greater Mekong Teak Seng said.
The loss of this iconic species for Laos is even more tragic given that it was entirely preventable through strict enforcement against gillnets fishing.
The Irrawaddy dolphins in the Mekong River have long been a favourite attraction among travellers and tourists in southern Laos. Their feared disappearance from Lao waters may cause a hard blow to eco-tourism in the area.
Irrawaddy dolphins can be found in some coastal areas in Asia but there are only three freshwater subpopulations: in the Ayeyarwady River in Myanmar, in the Mahakam River in Indonesia, and in the Mekong River in Cambodia and Laos.
Source: Vientiane Times
Mass Organisations Comment on NA, Government Performance
Public debt, abuse of power and other misconduct by government officials are some of the issues highlighted by mass organisations for the National Assembly (NA) and other government bodies to address.
Vice President of the Lao Front for National Construction, Ms Khamchanh Phomsengsavanh, representing the Front, Youth Union, Lao Women’s Union and other mass organisations, outlined their proposals to the NA and government yesterday at the Assembly’s ongoing debate session.
We propose to review for consideration the government’s investment debt, as a number of projects have been approved, while the government has repaid them, Ms Khamchanh said.
The huge public debt is burdening the country and its people, contributing to the fragility of the national economy, she added.
The mass organisations called on the NA to enhance their oversight, pointing out that many projects approved by the NA have been delayed, while others have proven to be totally ineffective.
Abuse of power by some officials in Vientiane was also included in the comments made by the organisations, who claimed corrupt officials hindered ordinary people’s attempt to make a living.
Mass organisations also remarked on the illegal import of vehicles, saying they were used by officials at the Ministry of Public Security and Ministry of National Defence.
If ordinary people committed such crimes they would be punished, but officials are not treated in the same way, Ms Khamchanh said.
She also passed on messages from people in the northern provinces, who want the government to clarify the social and environmental impacts concerning the planned Laos-China railway.
Other issues raised by mass organisations included illegal logging, the extraction of alluvial gold, the market price of crops, government employees abusing land reserves, and the delay of road construction projects.
They also wanted the government to review the importation of electricity, which consumes huge amounts of state money and creates significant public debt.
The 13 villages near the biggest hydropower dam in Nakai district, which have no access to electricity, was also a matter raised by the organisations for government consideration.
The placing of trade unions and other mass organisations within business units and factories and the increasing drug abuse by labourers who then became violent were also raised, with organisations calling on the government to enforce stricter measures against drug dealers.
The organisations asked the Ministry of Health to look into the ethics of medical staff following public complaints that they left medical students on standby at night and on holidays, which led to the unnecessary death of hospital patients. They also asked the government to control exaggerated advertising by private hospitals, along with health checks and treatment fees, after members of the public complained that these were too expensive.
Another issue raised was the number of signs put up by restaurants, companies and hotels, many of which were in foreign languages, along with the increase in the number of young people following foreign trends, and the excessive use of loudspeakers, bright lights and light boxes for advertising purposes, which caused public annoyance.
The organisation also raised concerns about monks who did not comply with Buddhist principles and violated the ethics of Buddhism by engaging in intimacy with people of the opposite sex.
Some leaders and followers of other religions in Laos were also said to be infringing their basic tenets.
Non-transparency and nepotism in public recruitment is also a significant concern the mass organisations want the NA and government to inspect.
For example, they said many people have worked for government agencies for five years, but were not granted civil servant status while others who had just recently graduated obtained the status after one year. Moreover, they said bribery used to obtain government jobs and promotion is rife, including in the public security and national defence agencies.
The organisations also requested closer monitoring of judiciary agencies and the police, which they said was weak, citing the detention of people without the authorisation of prosecutors, with some being detained without being charged or accused for longer than was stipulated by the law.
Source: Vientiane Times