ABSTRACT

This chapter begins by detailing the various conservation arguments made for orangutan rehabilitation and reintroduction (R&R). The author then explores why, despite its high cost and debated conservation value, R&R continues. A key reason, the author argues, is that the main alternatives to R&R – euthanising (or killing) orangutan orphans or keeping them in lifelong captivity – are widely viewed as practically or ethically unacceptable. However, debates remain, for example around whether life in captivity is preferable to “death with dignity” in the wild, and whether orangutans deserve more care and protection than other species. The chapter concludes by reflecting on how ongoing debates around R&R have more to do with practice than theory.