PETALING JAYA, Malaysia - The Department of Wildlife and National
Parks (Perhilitan) has launched an investigation into the attack by an
aggressive male gibbon on a little boy at Malacca Zoo.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah
Embas said Perhilitan has been told to tighten safety measures to
prevent a repeat of the incident.
"Perhilitan is investigating the gibbon attack. It has never happened
before and we are keen to find out why it happened," he said yesterday.
The gibbon attack was the latest in a series of freak animal attacks
that caused severe injury and in some cases, death to their victims.
The 15kg alpha male primate snatched three-year-old Muhammad Afiq
Haziq from his father's arms in the attack on Tuesday and tore a chunk
of flesh off his thigh. The boy also suffered facial and bodily
injuries,
It had earlier bitten another visitor, five-year-old Zukrina Abdul Hadi, on her left ankle.
Muhammad Afiq is reported to be in a stable condition at the Malacca
hospital after undergoing an operation on his ruptured tendon.
"I hope his wounds will recover fast," said his father Kamarul Baharin Othman, 38, at the hospital yesterday.
He denied reports that doctors were attempting to save Muhammad Afiq's leg from being amputated, saying it was not that serious.
Malacca Zoo director Ahmad Azhar Mohammed, who visited the injured
boy at the hospital, said the 10-year-old gibbon had been quarantined
pending a detailed investigation.
He said gibbons were not aggressive by nature, adding that the one which attacked the boy may have been provoked.
"We will re-inspect the condition of the gibbon's enclosure to ensure
the safety of visitors," he said, adding that the zoo would also bear
all costs incurred, including lodging for Muhammad Afiq's parents.
Malacca Zoo public relations officer Masri Mohd Arof said
investigations were ongoing to discover how the primate had crossed over
to the park from its colony on a man-made island.
The gibbon's enclosure is separated by a metre-deep waterway from the
public viewing space to prevent it from escaping, as gibbons are afraid
of water.
Earlier this month, Australian tourist Jenna O'Grady Donley was gored
to death by a Borneo pygmy bull elephant at the Tabin Wildlife Reserve.
In September, a local tourist guide and his assistant were attacked
by a 25-year-old orang utan at the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre in Sarawak.
Both of them suffered injuries.
Resource: The Star/Asia News Network
