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to act on these complaints may be significant. Policy solutions that take into
account the interests of multiple groups, using rigorously collected data when
possible, are desirable. The formation of “Macaque Boards” (i.e., groups of
individuals representing different interest groups), informed by professionals
with expertise and experience, may be a way to find acceptable solutions to
problems that occur at the interface.
Government agencies are likely to play an important role in enacting and
enforcing laws that regulate human behavior at the interface. Collaboration
between governmental agencies and communities (e.g., coordination of efforts
to patrol neighborhoods) has the potential to increase buy-in by communities
and may decrease the amount of resources the government needs to expend to
enforce regulation and manage macaque populations. Monitoring and regu-
lation of trade in primates is another important government function, as non-
native primates may introduce pathogens to an existing primate population.
Similarly, governments are the entities most likely to be able to monitor the
health of macaque populations, including free-ranging populations and other
contexts, such as pet markets.
Interagency conflict
Macaques do not respect geopolitical boundaries. They may range from an
area under the jurisdiction of one government agency (e.g., a park) into a
neighboring area under the jurisdiction of a separate agency (e.g., a residential
area). Thus, a regulatory response (e.g., enforcing fines for people who feed
macaques) initiated in one area may be ineffective, because it is not uniformly
applied in all areas in the macaques' range (Sha et al ., 2009b ). This phenom-
enon occurs both at the community level and, in a larger sense, between states
and nations. Intra and intergovernmental communication and coordination will
be critical in the development of a cohesive response strategy to the manage-
ment challenges of human-macaque interfaces.
Conclusion
The problems of human-macaque interface in Southeast Asia are complex and
extensive. A wide range of issues affects both humans and macaques. Every com-
munity has a unique set of challenges and resources; there are no one-size-fits-all
solutions. Some communities will elect to strive towards sustainable communities
with their neighboring macaques, while other poorer communities may pursue
eradication, considering the impact of macaques too costly to support. What we
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