BANGKOK – (dpa) – Animal protectors in Asia are sounding the alarm as the number of elephants is waning and are hoping to raise public awareness of the problem with a range of campaigns.
In Thailand, people are trying to secure the elephants’ existence on reservations, in parks and in the wild through media campaigns and by adopting the animals.In the kingdom of Thailand elephants are held in particularly high regard and in the Nakhon Pathom elephant park near Bangkok, a Jumbo Queen is even selected in an annual female elephant beauty contest.The elephant who best embodies the characteristics and features of the beast wins. Schoolchildren learn traditional elephant-care rituals and how to guide the animals in mahood training classes at elephant schools such as Ayutthaya.Phairat Chaiyakham, 59, head of the Pattaya Elephant Village, southeast of Bangkok, is appalled that too many animals roam through the streets of Asian metropolises in heavy traffic, with their owners begging passers-by for money.“Those animals suffer from malnutrition and are prone to diseases.” Begging is illegal in Thailand but it has not been wiped out completely.Dries van Veen from Surhuisterveen in the Netherlands is an elephant “guardian” in Pattaya Park. “The animals are well protected here. And that is something that should be supported,” he said.An elephant protege of his recently gave birth to a baby.“I love these animals. But their upkeep costs a lot”, said the “guardian”, who has lived in Thailand for some time.Chaiyakham hopes that Thai and German business people in Pattaya and Bangkok as well as long-term vacationers will follow his example. The huge park currently shelters 32 animals and has received many awards.In Asia, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in particular have urged politicians and legal officials to do more to protect the elephants. They are supported by the World Wildlife Fonds (WWF).According to WWF estimates, only about 35,000 to 50,000 elephants in Asia’s 14 elephant countries live in the wild. In Africa, there are ten times as many.Asia’s elephant population is dwindling. Twelve years ago, about 2,000 elephants ran free in Vietnam compared to only 150 nowadays.“The huge population pressure has fatal effects on both man and animal”, says Philip Goelthenboth of the German chapter of nature group WWF in Frankfurt.The clearing of forests has interrupted the animals’ routes. Hungry elephants pilfer harvests and trample over huts.In India alone, 300 people annually die from such rampages. Many elephants are poisoned on plantations or shot by the farmers.Being heavyweight makes for hunger. The colossal animals love eating bamboo, sugar cane, banana plants and palm leaves.A healthy diet for an elephant consists of about 200 kilograms of fodder and 100 litres of water a day. That alone costs Pattaya village or a “guardian” 25 euros (27 dollars) per day and animal.“It is very important to help nature and the animals especially as elephants are an important symbol of Thailand”, said Udo Hartung in Pattaya.The 58-year-old businessman from Bavaria in Germany added: “Many needy people – children in particular – in Thailand require the help of their fellow citizens.”Sombath Preede, 23, an employee and tour guide at the elephant village in Pattaya tells astonished visitors: “These heavyweight animals are nimble, if need be. They can run at up to 40 kilometres per hour in panic.“Elephants can lift up to 700 kilos with their trunks.” Visitors can watch their feats at the park.Preede’s talk of a “driver’s licence for elephants” is met with general laughter, but at least the leaders of working elephants particularly in northeast Thailand “are trained and have a licence to guide and ride”.
