Illegal loggers threaten Thai elephants

CHIANG MAI, Thailand (JP): "The illegal loggers are destroying the elephant," explained Sumaytas Yaviraj, of the Chiang Dao Elephant Training Center. "In 10 years, Thailand will have less than 1,000 elephants left."

While Sumaytas, who began as a mahout at age eight, earns his living providing tourists with the opportunity to spend a few hours in the jungle on the back of an elephant, it is clear his concerns are about far more than just business.

"It is very difficult to buy a good elephant these days," he says angrily. "The illegal loggers use many of the working elephants, so when we need one I must go to the national parks where the forests are being destroyed."

"Of 20 I see, maybe three are okay. The rest are thin and sick, with many wounds. They inject them with stimulants and work them sometimes from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.. Elephants are strong, but even they must rest. Many die," he says sadly.

In contrast, even for the light work of ferrying tourists, Sumaytas only works his 24 elephants from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., usually just two trips each. "We think the elephant is an animal, not a machine," he explains. "Other elephant camps work their elephants longer, and that is why sometimes there are accidents where the elephants get bad tempered and throw off the tourists."

This exploitation of the animals angers him. But it is the illegal loggers for whom he has the most contempt. "In the past, when everyone used elephants for work, they knew how to take care of them. Many elephants worked together, and so they mixed and produced good stock. Now, they don't have babies because they don't have time to mate, and then they die young from overwork," he says.

"The elephant is part of the culture of Thailand," he adds. "But soon they will all be gone."

-- Lawrence Pintak