Animals Gone Wild: Indonesian Delivery Service Criticized for Delivering King Cobra

SEMARANG, KOMPAS.com - Indonesian netizens put a delivery service specializing in transporting live reptiles on their sights, after a video showing a king cobra escaping one of its parcels during a run between the Javanese cities of Semarang and Surabaya went viral. 

Semarang-based reptile buff Wisnu Aji criticized the delivery service's method of transporting live reptiles."The company's should have procedures in place to ensure the safety of the driver, not neglect their well-being," he said to Kompas.com on Monday, January 18.

"Their packing method is clearly unsafe and enabled the snakes to escape. They even neglected to apply multiple layers on the box or tape the snake's mouth, much less put them in a sack or container before they are packed."

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"[The king cobras pose a danger to others] if they are not packed by experts."

Facebook user Firdaus Hisyam, who shared the video, did not hold back. "If anybody out there happens to know the sender, please give him tips on safely delivering cargo, especially if the items are highly venomous snakes [like king cobras]," he said. 

Twitter user @andriyaniokvitaputri reiterated Firdaus. "The delivery service should have refused to deliver the live reptiles, as they are potentially dangerous," she said. "I did not know snakes can be delivered like that," said fellow netizen @abidsetia07.

Also read: More Snakes Appear in Jakarta's Residential Neighborhoods

Meanwhile, JNE delivery company branch head for the provinces of Central Java and Yogyakarta Marsudi dispelled allegations about the company's complicity in delivering the reptiles.  

“We do carry out deliveries for plants and animals. But we separate them from normal items, and they should have a special permit." He added that the items should be packed in a more secure, expert manner. 

Venomous snakes, such as Javanese cobras and tree vipers, are popular on the illegal pet market, despite of, or perhaps because of, their dangerous reputation. 

(Writer: Riska Farasonalia, Semarang Contributor | Editors: Pythag Kurniati, Khairina)

Sources: 

https://regional.kompas.com/read/2021/01/19/12275411/video-viral-ular-king-kobra-lolos-dari-paket-dikecam-karena-bahayakan-kurir?page=all#page2. 

https://regional.kompas.com/read/2021/01/19/05550021/heboh-king-cobra-berhasil-lepas-dari-paket-pengiriman-semarang-ke-surabaya?page=all#page2.