Thailand airlifts ‘gifted’ elephant from Sri Lanka amid spat over mistreating jumbo

By Agence France-Presse: A Thai elephant that was gifted to Sri Lanka twenty years in the past was flown again to Thailand on Sunday as a result of a diplomatic dispute over its alleged mistreatment. Thai authorities had given the 29-year-old elephant, Muthu Raja, also referred to as Sak Surin, to Sri Lanka in 2001. However, they demanded its return final yr following allegations of torture and neglect whereas it was at a Buddhist temple within the southern a part of the island.

The 4,000-kilogram mammal was transported from Colombo airport on a one-way industrial flight, costing USD 700,000 in line with Thai officers. After arriving in Chiang Mai, the elephant might be quarantined at a close-by nature reserve.

Muthu Raja was taken from his momentary residence at a zoo in Colombo earlier than daybreak in a specifically designed metal cage. Four Thai handlers and a Sri Lankan keeper accompanied the elephant on the flight, whereas two CCTV cameras monitored its well being throughout transit.

According to the chief veterinarian at Dehiwala Zoo, Madusha Perera, Muthu Raja was in ache and coated in abscesses when it was rescued from its earlier abode final yr. Animal welfare teams declare that the elephant had been compelled to work with a logging crew, and its wounds, some allegedly inflicted by its handler, had been uncared for.

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Once again in Thailand, the elephant will endure hydrotherapy to deal with a remaining harm to its entrance left leg, as per Perera’s assertion. In Sri Lanka, elephants are thought of sacred and guarded by regulation. The group Rally for Animal Rights and Environment (RARE), which campaigned for the elephant’s rescue from the temple, expressed dissatisfaction over its departure and is searching for prosecution for these liable for neglecting the animal.

A nationalist group in Sri Lanka staged an illustration exterior the Thai embassy in Colombo, demanding the elephant’s continued keep in Sri Lanka for one more six months. The wildlife minister, Pavithra Wanniarachchi, said that Thailand was agency in its calls for for the elephant’s return. Thai setting minister Varawut Silpa-archa didn’t touch upon whether or not Muthu Raja had been mistreated however talked about that the Thai authorities had halted the follow of sending elephants overseas. Bangkok’s diplomatic missions at the moment are inspecting the situation of elephants that had been beforehand despatched abroad.