Elephants run amok in Riau

Elephants run amok in Riau

KAMPAR, Riau: Dozens of elephants have run amok in the Kampar
subdistrict, destroying 141 hectares of crops and scaring villag
ers, reports said yesterday.

Villagers say the animals, which are protected by law, emerge
in large herds from nearby forests between dusk and dawn,
devouring and trampling crops.

Residents complain the authorities close their eyes to the
problem, saying they are tired of asking for help to repulse the
big beasts.

"They (elephants) have come again lately. When we hear their
scary bellows of hunger, we run into our houses and close the
doors until the next day," a resident said.

Antara reported yesterday that a number of villages in Kampar
were like "ghost villages". "Farmers are afraid to leave their
houses let alone work on their farms," a peasant, Syamsuar, said.

Syamsuar lives in a village near a major oil palm plantation
and an Air Force shooting range.

On Sunday, a herd of elephants destroyed a three hectare
rubber plantation in Simpangkare village. (pan)