Elephant tries to break free as it is stabbed with spears in Thailand
Gentle giant is tied up and tortured as punishment for ‘bad behaviour’: Elephant tries in vain to break free as it is stabbed with spears in Thailand
- The elephant was tied to a tree by its legs and tusks in Surin, North East Thailand
- Footage showed the animal charging to escape as onlookers videoed it
Disturbing footage emerged showing an elephant tied up and beaten with spears made of bamboo as a form of punishment for bad behaviour.
At least six men, armed with weapons, tied the gentle giant by its’ legs and tusks to a tree in Surin, North East Thailand.
The owners appeared to be unable to control the animal’s behaviour and resorted to an ancient and brutal method of behaviour management in the hope to kill the elephant’s energy and spirits.
The footage showed a man sitting on the distressed elephant’s back as it frantically pulled at the ropes tied to the tree.
Disturbing footage showed the elephant tied up to a tree in Surin, North East Thailand and beaten with spears made of bamboo as a form of punishment for bad behaviour by four men who cannot control the animal
As the animal got more agitated over people prodding it with their weapons, the man jumped off its back to help the others try to control the mammal.
Surrounding onlookers videoed the traumatic experience as the elephant tried to charge to escape the group of people surrounding it.
At least nine people can be spotted watching the incident take place as some take pictures standing safely away by their silver truck.
Conservationist Jinwimon Mahasup, who follows wild elephants in sprawling national woodland across the country, said wild elephants do not behave like the animal seen in the video.
The men resorted to an ancient and brutal method of behaviour management in the hope to kill the elephant’s energy and spirits
The elephant tried frantically to escape as more people gathered to watch the animal suffer in captivity
As the elephant became more agitated the man sat on the mammal’s back jumped down in the hope to control the animal from the ground
She said: ‘Domestic elephants are chained and imprisoned, which makes them go crazy. They become agitated and the only way the owners know how to respond is with more violence.
‘The people are attacking the elephant to try and control it.
‘With independent wild elephants, there is no such behaviour. Man is the destroyer, raising elephants for their own profit.
‘We do not like these people because they exploit elephants for their own benefit. Sadly, most of the people who raise elephants in captivity are those taking advantage of them.’
One of the most well-known elephant conservationists Saengduean Chailert, or Lek, runs a sanctuary in Chiang Mai in the north of the country.
She has recently banned visitors from bathing, feeding and touching the elephants – leading to the number of tourists visiting her Elephant Nature Park falling by half.
Tour operators told her that they could no longer send holidaymakers ‘because everyone ‘wants to touch and hug the elephants, they want to put their hands on them’.
At least nine people can be spotted watching the incident take place as some take pictures by the safety of their silver truck
The distressed elephant attempted to charge in the hope to break free but couldn’t break free from its restraints
Thailand has an estimated 2,000 Asian elephants living in the wild – down from 100,000 a century ago – and around 3,000 in captivity owned privately
Saengduean, who is also known as Thailand’s ‘Elephant Whisperer’, is now encouraging other venues at popular tourist destinations such as Phuket and Koh Samui to ban people from contact with the creatures.
Animal rights groups such as World Animal Protection (WAP) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have supported the changes.
PETA has also called for laws banning the use of elephants in the tourism and entertainment industry.
Vice President Jason Baker said: ‘Sadly, history has shown us that we can’t rely on governments to protect animals, especially in countries like Thailand, where animal welfare laws are weak.’
BBC investigators also found that state intervention in animal welfare was inadequate.
Thailand has an estimated 2,000 Asian elephants living in the wild – down from 100,000 a century ago – and around 3,000 in captivity owned privately.
Many are used for Buddhist ceremonies and festivals, with many of the country’s civilians defending their culture and history of using elephants, including in tribal wars from the 9th century until World War 2.
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