Guest guest Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 ***************************Advertisement*************************** ***************************************************************** This message was forwarded to you by yitzeling. Comment from sender: This article is from The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my) URL: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2005/6/13/nation/11204484 & sec=nation ________________________ Monday June 13, 2005 Farmers told not to kill elephants KOTA KINABALU: Oil palm farmers whose crops have been destroyed by displaced Borneo pygmy elephants should stop their “revenge killings”. They are the prime suspects for the brutal killings of several such elephants in the state. The right thing to do is to allow the Wildlife Department to handle the elephants, said Sarawak Assistant Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Karim Bujang. “Don’t take things into your own hand by killing the elephants. When you see them (the pygmy elephants), call the Wildlife Department so that the animals can be rescued and relocated to other areas where they will not pose problems,” he said. He said that the Borneo elephants must be conserved and it was important that farmers understand this, adding that it was only three years ago that the elephants were found to be a sub-species of the Asian elephants. Karim said the co-operation of farmers and villagers was necessary until a decision was made on what to do with some 200 displaced elephants. Responding to the killings of five pygmy elephants in the state over the last eight months, he said the state government would not hesitate to act against the culprits, adding that investigations were underway. The latest elephant slaying occurred on Wednesday, with a decapitated head of a pygmy found floating on Sungai Kinabatangan. The Sarawak government is thinking of relocating the elephants into wildlife forest reserves or via exchange programmes with foreign zoos. Speaking up for the affected farmers, honorary wildlife ranger Datuk Wilfred Lingham suggested that the state government set up a fund to pay compensation to them. He said the government should consider the plight of smallholders whose life savings were wiped out when their crops were destroyed almost overnight by the elephants. <p> ________________________ Your one-stop information portal: The Star Online http://thestar.com.my http://biz.thestar.com.my http://classifieds.thestar.com.my http://cards.thestar.com.my http://search.thestar.com.my http://star-motoring.com http://star-space.com http://star-jobs.com http://star-ecentral.com http://star-techcentral.com 1995-2004 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Star Publications is prohibited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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