Gibbon Conservation Society

Gibbon Conservation Society (GCS), founded in 2013, has been at the forefront of efforts to combat wildlife trafficking in Malaysia, particularly focusing on the illegal pet trade of gibbons.

We have been involved in several campaigns to dismantle the operations of major wildlife traffickers. One significant success was our 2019 social media campaign, #TumpaskanKejoraAmsyar, which targeted “Kejora Pets,” one of Malaysia’s biggest wildlife sellers. Through this campaign, we managed to get the trader’s social media accounts shut down, significantly disrupting their operations after nearly a decade of activity.

Despite the Malaysian Wildlife Act of 2010, which classifies gibbons as "Totally Protected Species," the rise of social media has fueled illegal trade. Gibbons are often sold as pets, despite the fact that acquiring one usually involves the killing of the entire gibbon family, as these animals are highly protective of their young.

Only a fraction of captured gibbons survive transportation, with most suffering from severe injuries or psychological trauma. We continue to work on gibbon rehabilitation through Malaya Gibbon Rehabilitation Project (Malaya GReP) and Borneo Gibbon Rehabilitation Project (Borneo GReP), which aims to return former pet gibbons to the wild, but the process can take up to 15 years for each gibbon. These efforts are part of our broader mission to reduce human-wildlife conflict and preserve Malaysia’s gibbon populations.