'Komodo Rescue Campaign' Spreads Online
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-ju] As photos of Komodo dragons blocking trucks at a resort construction site on Rinca Island, Indonesia, spread on social media, calls to halt the development are growing louder.
According to local media such as Bisnis on the 26th, photos of Komodo dragons confronting trucks at the Loh Buaya Resort construction site on Rinca Island have recently been circulating on Twitter and other platforms.
The photos have sparked a consensus that human destruction of the Komodo dragons' habitat must be stopped.
There are about 1,300 Komodo dragons living on Rinca Island, and approximately 15 of them frequently appear in the resort construction area.
As a result, an online campaign using the hashtag 'SaveKomodo' (#SaveKomodo) has started, and a petition urging the cancellation of the resort development permit has gathered over 340,000 signatures.
The Komodo National Park authorities and local government approved the construction, planning to develop the Rinca Island resort in a Jurassic Park style.
The authorities stated, "Five to ten monitors are watching during the construction period to ensure that the Komodo dragons are not harmed."
An organization called 'Good Friends of Komodo' (KawanBaikKomodo) pointed out on Twitter, "(After the controversy arose) the authorities banned access to the Rinca Island construction site as well as photography and distribution of photos," adding, "The public can no longer know what is happening in the Komodo habitat."
Meanwhile, the Komodo dragon, designated as a 'vulnerable species' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has an average body length of 2.3 meters and weighs around 80 kg. Occasionally, individuals exceeding 3 meters in length and weighing nearly 160 kg have been found.
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