KOTA BARU: A Malaysian woman might be fined and jailed for several years in a Narathiwat prison just for having a marmoset without a licence.
The 25-year-old from Terengganu was arrested by the Thai authorities on March 11 and is currently under remand at the prison.
Narathiwat Prison Penological Operation head Chuanpit Phonchana told the New Straits Times that the woman had been detained in the Sungai Golok sub-province.
"The Thai authorities found that the Malaysian woman was in possession of a marmoset, which is a protected species in this country.
"She is now being held at the Narathiwat prison waiting for the remand order to end before she is brought to the Narathiwat court," she added.
In Thailand, it is illegal to possess a monkey even as a pet unless it is licenced or has a permit as a 'helper animal'.
This is almost similar to Malaysia where trafficking the endangered and protected animal is also an offence.
It is learnt that over the past years, authorities recorded an increase of the import of monkeys into Thailand, including those brought into the country by air.
Monkeys of different species were mostly shipped from South Africa, Brazil, Guyana and Surinam.
The most commonly traded monkeys are marmosets, Squirrel Monkeys, Tamarins and Capuchins who are listed as Appendix 2 species.
These exotic animals can be seized in Thailand under the country's Customs Act, 1962 read with Wildlife Protection Act 1972.
The population of macaques is big in Thailand and this led to authorities having them neutered in some areas of the kingdom as they have posed a threat to human beings.
The high number of marmosets in Thailand has also prompted wildlife sellers to sell the animals to traders without the required Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) licence. They also trade the animals online.