Topeng Monyet literally means "masked monkey." Today, in Indonesia, Topeng monyet can basically mean any performing monkey used to solicit money. The practice itself is outlawed in DKI Jakarta, yet the problem continues.
Recently, as my family and I drove out from our neighborhood in East Jakarta, we came across a man with a topeng monyet on a chain. The young adult female long-tailed macaque was riding a makeshift scooter. The man would push her in front of people, then abruptly yank the monkey back to him via the chain. It looked as if she were both bound to the scooter by her foot and tethered to the man by a chain around her neck.
We saw no one give the begging man money at the time we passed, but from seeing how other street touts receive money, the topeng monyet owner likely makes the equivalent of $1 or $1.50 USD* per hour on the street. They likely roam the streets for several hours in the year-round tropical heat of Jakarta.
It is not a good life for a monkey. The female macaque we saw showed signs of distress and fear when being flung forward and pulled back. The monkey has to contend with domestic animals reacting to its presence, as well as near misses from passing cars and motorbikes.
If the performing macaque becomes aggressive, ill or injured it is profoundly likely that it will be liquidated (either by resale, dumping into a random forest, or killed).
I am in the process of trying to report this sighting in the hopes that local authorities will act on the information. Still, it seems like a hopeless situation, and a positive outcome for the topeng monyet is very unlikely.
*To put it into an economic context, the animal market near our neighborhood sells long-tailed macaques (see images below). Local Indonesian buyers can usually negotiate the purchase of a baby monkey for the equivalent of $40 USD. The Return on Investment (ROI) if they use the macaque as a topeng monyet can be lucrative. If they take in $10 USD per day, six days per week, it nets them more than $240 per month, which is the same wages as a domestic helper in East Jakarta.
(All Images Taken by Rick Wood 2021 -2023)
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