Alarm Grows as Indonesia Resumes Exporting Long-Tailed Macaques to Laboratories
As Indonesia reopens the door to exporting long-tailed macaques for lab testing, JAAN and partner organizations are calling for an immediate halt and stronger protections for one of the country's most exploited native species.
JAAN Indonesia is raising the alarm over a troubling resurgence in the export of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) from Indonesia to overseas laboratories. We've joined Action for Primates, Natha Satwa Nusantara (NSN), Animal Lawyer Indonesia (ALI), Lady Freethinker (LFT), and Animal Friends Jogja (AFJ) in speaking out.
The trigger: CITES recorded a new Indonesian export quota of 1,928 monkeys in June 2026. It's the first since 2022.
Femke den Haas, JAAN Co-founder: The Indonesian government is taking a major step backwards on primate protection... weakening safeguards for one of Indonesia's most exploited native species is a deeply concerning decision that threatens animal welfare, conservation, and the country's international reputation."
A new breeding facility
A facility capable of holding 4,000 macaques has reportedly been built in Mesuji Regency, Lampung, with plans to breed and export animals for research and toxicity testing. The company is also said to be buying wild-caught monkeys from local communities for roughly Rp200,000 each. This is raising fears that wild-caught animals are being laundered into a "commercial breeding" operation.
No legal protection
Long-tailed macaques are native to Indonesia, listed under CITES Appendix II, and classified as Endangered with a declining population by the IUCN. Unfortunetaly, they have no legal protection under Indonesian law. This gap has allowed continued capture for breeding, export, the pet trade, and exploitative social media content.
What we've documented
In 2022, Action for Primates released footage of brutal wild capture practices, including infants torn from mothers and unwanted animals killed. Long-tailed macaques remain the primary primate species used in regulatory toxicity testing — even as the UK, EU, and US move toward non-animal alternatives like organ-on-chip technology and AI modelling. A former UK lab worker recently shared further evidence of the suffering these animals endure, first reported by the Daily Mail in April 2026.
Nina Jackel, Lady Freethinker: "These macaques are not laboratory commodities... Restarting exports risks condemning thousands more animals to suffering for a system the world is increasingly moving beyond."
Our call to action.
JAAN and Action for Primates are urging the Indonesian Government to:
- Suspend exports of long-tailed macaques
- Strengthen legal protections for the species
- Prevent wild capture for commercial breeding
- Invest in evidence-based human–macaque coexistence strategies
SIGN THE PETITION AT LADY FREETHINKER
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