The toture of our majestic beasts

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The IslandTuesday 8th July

 

The torture of our majestic beasts

 

by Kala Santha

 

The local authority at Aranayake has requested six elephants from the

elephant orphanage to be given to a Vedamahaththaya of Aranayaka who has a

clinic by the riverbed of Maoya at Aranayake. The local authority is using

this as a project to show the Ali Wedakama (treatment of elephants) and

attract tourists to Aranayaka. Heated iron rods are used to burn the boils

to treat the legs of the elephants. The elephant is not anaesthetised. That

is a cruel outdated method.

 

It is accepted world wide that the sick or healthy wild animals get stressed

when humans are present. That’s why now they have sanctuaries which are not

open to public or which would be opened to public few times of the year. It

is not suitable to start a breeding center at a place where sick elephants

are being treated. This will transmit diseases to the baby elephants.

 

Earlier there was a plan to auction 10 elephants from the elephant

orphanage. There were too many buyers and they wanted to have them for a

very low price. The present Government has given away elephants of the

Pinwale Orphanage as follows: -.

 

An elephant named Taraka was given to Kaduwela Devalaya. He is 14 years old.

I treated this elephant as it was brought from the jungle when I was working

at the zoo.

 

Chula is a 11 years old orphaned wild elephant. It was given to Palmadulla

(Sabaragamuwa) temple.

 

Saliya was born at the Orphanage .Parents are Matal and Neela. It was given

to Kataragama Kiri Vehera. It is 4 years old.

 

Kumari is quite unfortunate as it was transferred from Ath Athuru Sevana to

Pinnawela where she could have been released to the jungle. She is 6 years

old. In 2002 the Government decided to send her to Croatia . It was saved as

European Union didn’t permit that because there was an out break of foot and

mouth disease in Sri Lanka. She was given to Kande Viharaya.

 

An elephant named Isuru was given to Mahiyanganaya Devalaya. This elephant

was born at the elephant orphanage. Mother`s name is Anusha. It is seven

years old. Sinharaja is an orphaned wild elephant. It was given to the

Polwatte temple at Gampaha district. A Minister of Gampaha District has

requested for this elephant.

 

It was a very bad decision as this temple was given a female elephant named

Kanchana from the orphanage. Last year it died after lightning struck her

metal chain. She was 10 years old at the time of her death .

 

Not only Sinharaja all these elephants were given away on requests of the

ministers and politicians of the Government. These majestic beasts are

virtually condemned to torture and death as they would be beaten and tied

with the chains most of the time. I sent a letter to the Minister of

Buddasasana and Justice Mr. W. J. M. Lokubandara and Minister of Education

and Cultural affairs requesting to bring back these baby elephants and allow

them to live with their their friends and parents at Pinnawela and to take

them to these Processions in the relevant temples during the period of the

processions.

 

The elephant Raja who belonged to Bellanwila temple was injured by a vehicle

on the 23rd of June. When he was returning from a procession. The frightened

elephant ran 10 kilometers and the mahout has admitted he didn’t try to see

where the elephant had gone. He was looking for the mahouts who were

injured. Fortunately the Police officers of the Kalutara Police acted in a

correct manner to save the elephant.

 

On the 2nd of March 2003 at 1 a.m. some animal lovers informed me that a

baby elephant being tortured at Battaramulla Arpico Super Center. The

elephant was about 9 years old. Its two feet were tied closely with cable

wires. The metal wires were cutting into the flesh.

 

I threw some plantains to the ground and the elephant ate them. The time was

one in the morning. One animal lover took his camera and the gang who

accompanied the elephant threatened to kill him. They took the elephant to

the elephant owner’s home at Horahena in Kottawa. One senior citizen talked

to me in a sad mood and said " At about 7.30 p.m. the mahout had beaten the

elephant – Elephant was tired at that time and became angry and attacked the

mahout. It was a minor injury. For six hours this baby elephant was beaten

and they attacked it with the ‘Ankuru’. They used metal wires to tie the

legs which is very painful to the poor animal! "

 

These are the kind of private elephant owners who ask the Government to give

the Pinnawela elephants to them. Is there a way to bring these people to

Justice? I informed a secretary of the Environment Ministry on the 2nd of

March and sent letters to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Justice to

inquire about the incident and to amend the out dated prevention of cruelty

to animals law. The Minister of Justice has forwarded the letter to the

Environment Ministry and sent a reply with a copy to me. We like to know

what action has been taken against that cruel act.

 

In 1999 this baby elephant struggled with an elephant keeper of Kottawa as

it didn’t like to bathe in the dirty water. The elephant pushed the elephant

keeper into the tank. Later the elephant’s mother restrained the baby and

covered the keepers body with coconut leaves. Another baby elephant

belonging to the Kottawa elephant owner died as the mahouts started beating

the elephant and the elephant started to struggle to escape from them. The

noose tightened around the neck killing the baby when it fell down from the

slope at Aranayake. These elephants suffer with the elephant owner at

Kottawa. It would have been better had these two baby elephants were not born.

 

Elephants are extremely social animals and should never be kept in solitary

confinement and mother and offspring should be kept together until the

offspring is at least seven years of age.

 

The elephants hide is sensitive and needs a lot of care in the wild, they

use leaves sand or earth to cool the body and retain the moisture of the

skin. Elephant who are chained by their legs for the majority period of

their lives suffer immensely physically and emotionally. These elephants

usually develop abnormal behavior such as head bobbing, rocking from side to

side. When the elephants are chained on one place in their own excrement

specially on concrete floor it causes problems such as joint diseases, foot

rot sole cracks, interdigital calluses, hoof overgrowth, crackd nails,

infected cuticles, overworn soles and arise puncture by foreign objects.

 

In 1996 I requested the previous Government and to abolish chaining method

of elephants and release the elephants of the zoological Gardens to a place

where they can enjoy freedom. In 2001 many international animal welfare

organisations requested the Attorney General and the present government to

pass an anti-chaining legislation for captive elephants. The elephants who

are used for tourist rides are often denied food water and rest. They are

forced to work in the hot sun for hours.Their backs have sores from the

sharp howdah. The American Zoo and Aquarium Association instituted a policy

against the use of elephants for rides.

 

If the Government feels that they are financially not able to maintain the

elephants at Pinnawela they can release some of these elephants and the

elephants at Ath athuru sevana to safe areas of the jungle.

 

The writer has worked as a veterinary surgeon at the National Zoological

Gardens from 1987 upto 1990.

 

 

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