Sanctuaries Vs Zoos - Mali's Case
Aditha Dissanayake
"Dear All,
Mali’s abode of 35 years. Courtesy PETA
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Please do your best to help me. I am Mali from Sri Lanka currently
living in a South East Asian country. When they killed my mother even as
I was sucking at her breast, I thought this is surely the worst thing
that could ever happen to me. Little did I know my future would hold
even darker moments.
They called me an orphan back then, back in the year I was born,
1974. I didn't mind. I missed my mother at first, but soon my foster
aunts and cousins took me into their midst - loved me as one of their
own. I was happy in my motherland.. the daily baths in the river with my
adopted brothers and sisters, the lush green surroundings, the feel of
grass under my feet... is that really me that I see in these pictures in
my mind's eye? Thirty five years in this room, on my own, going nowhere,
doing nothing is far too long a time to recall the exact details of
those happy days. Will I ever know a world like that again?"
Does this look like a spam mail that lands in your inbox when someone
hacks into someone else's email account? Relax. This is not one of them.
In fact, this is not even a real email. This is the message Mali would
have sent if she had access to email.
If only she could voice her thoughts. If only she could share with
the world the loneliness of her life, the pain of walking on cracked
feet, the companionship of the kinsmen she yearns for, the wish to
ramble across vast stretches of land, nibbling at leaves, scratching her
back on a tree , trumpeting loudly and listening to the answering call
from a neighbour, close by.
Though Mali bears her sorrows silently, there are those who have
begun to give a voice to her silent cries and demanding that she be
given another chance at life.
Environmentalist and Wildlife Enthusiast Srilal Miththapala, speaking
on behalf of Mali says elephants are highly social animals and thrive on
constant interaction with others, "if you watch them in the wild they
are always rumbling - talking to each other, touching, smelling and
interacting." Even if ill health or ill treatment are not issues for
Mali at the foreign zoo, he thinks she must be sympathized with because
she is ALONE.
Irangani de Silva, President of Animal Welfare Trust, joining the
petition asking for Mali's release says "We human beings should see
ourselves as caretakers of Mother Nature, not be her destroyers. "As in
the case of Mali, the world would be a better place for all the children
of nature, if mankind learns to empathize with their animal
counterparts."
The good news is, some of us have already begun to do so. PETA
Asia-Pacific, an affiliate of PETA US, the world's largest animal rights
organization, is doing their best to make us all 'empathize" with Mali.
"Try to imagine living your whole life in a room the size of a bedroom,
seeing the same four walls every day. You'd have no friends or
companionship and nothing whatsoever to pass the time or provide you
with comfort. You'd never get to leave. That's exactly what life is like
for Mali," writes PETA on their petition campaigning for Mali's right to
a sanctuary which has already gathered over 37,844 signatures.
Reminding the world "Mali is a mere shell of the magnificent being
she is meant to be" PETA says if the foreign authorities will release
Mali she would be transferred safely to an elephant sanctuary and that
PETA is willing to bear all the expenses.
Not everyone though, is convinced Mali is in bad health, is ill
treated at the zoo and will thrive if she is returned to the wilderness
(or pseudo wilderness) of a sanctuary. Among them is veteran advertising
photographer John Chua, who has been Mali's volunteer caretaker since
2001. "Don't tell me she's sick or that she'll die if she's not moved.
I've taken care of her for 10 years. That's no joke," says Chua in an
interview with Jaymee T. Gamil in the "Philippine Daily Inquirer".
The article records how he treats her almost every day to her
favorite food like mangoes, bananas, even orange-flavored popsicles,
gives her a shower and a soothing spray on her massive feet, and puts
her through what he calls an "enrichment program" that includes "coconut
football" or a lazy dip in a puddle. Chua himself has donated a water
pump for Mali's enclosure, found private sponsors for other improvements
at the site, and even trained how to handle such an animal in Singapore
and at the Pinnawala elephant orphanage where Mali comes from-all to
"make her life better" writes Gamil. Chua is suspicious of PETA's
objectives in trying to help Mali, though, and insists "if they (PETA)
really care for her, (they should) care for her now."
Authorities who are in direct contact with Mali continue to guarantee
Mali is in good health and is not ill treated at the zoo. Especially so,
as the zoo has improved Mali's living quarters after the suggestions
made by certain authorities, expanding her "room" and installing a water
fountain in it. Manila Zoo's chief veterinarian Donald Manalastas, in a
statement issued to the Agence France-Presse says "We have expanded the
enclosure of Mali and increased her food with more nutrients. We have
proof and papers of what we feed her. We do not torture her." According
to Deogracias Manimbo, head of Manila's Public Recreation and Parks
Bureau, which oversees the Manila Zoo, Mali "is used to this kind of
environment," and explains in a statement issued to the Philippine Daily
Inquirer "she might not withstand a different environment from what she
has gotten used to."
Yet, PETA remains unconvinced.
Mali at the zoo |
In an exclusive interview with the Daily News, Ashley Fruno Senior
Campaigner, PETA Asia, reiterates the point of every animal lover who
abhors to see animals in zoos. "Study after study tells us that housing
these complex and intelligent animals alone is severely detrimental to
their mental health." says Fruno and adds "female elephants should never
be housed alone."
Countermanding the fear that Mali will not survive in a new
environment, or know how to interact with other elephants, having lived
for so long alone, Fruno explains "Renowned veterinarian and elephant
expert Dr. Mel Richardson has examined Mali and believes that she is fit
to travel to a sanctuary. Around the world, many elephants are
transported from zoos to other zoos and zoos to sanctuaries each year
without problems. Experts have said that they have seen many elephants
who have been housed alone for a great number of years adjust quickly to
sanctuary life, and we believe that will be the same for Mali."
If all goes well, if Mali is released from her present location, PETA
intends to transfer her to Boon Lott's Elephant Sanctuary (BLES) in
Thailand. Currently housing 12 Asian elephants, the sanctuary spreads
over 500 acres and is run by staff who are knowledgeable in
rehabilitating elephants. "The staff would never force the elephants to
interact if they don't want to" assures Fruno.
Detailing Mali's future in the sanctuary Fruno adds "after Mali is
transferred to the sanctuary, she will be housed in a separate pen of
several acres for the first 6 months. She will be able to interact with
other elephants through a fence if she wants to. After the initial 6
months, she will be free to leave her area and interact with the other
elephants if she chooses to."
Life at BLES would provide Mali with everything she has missed ever
since she arrived at the zoo, thirty five long years ago: acres to roam
the land as she wishes, a chance to splash and play in rivers and ponds,
fruits and leaves to forage for, and most importantly, the company of
other elephants.
Mali's solitude has not been in vain. Her condition has melted the
hearts of many animal lovers from all over the world, hopefully paving
the path for better conditions of her brethren. Among those who are
speaking on behalf of Mali are World-Renowned Animal Expert Dr. Jane
Goodall, heads of many animal protection groups and the two-time Booker
Prize winner J. M Coetzee.
Before I rest this sincere attempt to construe a case on behalf of
Mali, let me quote Coetzee, for he says it best. ".....Mali has paid the
penalty for not being fortunate enough to be born human. Now it is time
to release her."
[email protected]
Veterinarian :
Dr. Mel Richardson says
Residents of the Boon Lott’s elephant sanctuary |
"My major concern is that Mali is alone. Female elephants in their
natural habitat never leave the herd. They are in constant communication
with the other members of their family.
"Even the best intentions of ... her keepers (who all clearly care
about Mali's well-being) cannot replace these needs, which can only be
met by the companionship of other elephants. In my experience,even
elephants who have been alone for more than 20 years integrate well with
other elephants when moved to a sanctuary. "
From the report: Health Evaluation of Vishwamali (Mali), an
approximately 38-year-old female Asian elephant, living at the Manila
Zoo, Philippines, based on an inspection on 29 May 2012
Ivory trade ban up for vote at UN wildlife summit
The question of whether to extend a trade ban on African ivory is set
for a vote at the next meeting of UN wildlife trade regulator CITES, the
organisation said Friday.
It is "probably the most contentious issue" at the Bangkok conference
in March, said John Scanlon, the head of CITES, the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
Citing the "highest level of illegal killing and trade in 20 years",
Scanlon said the meeting offered a chance to halt the "spike in poaching
in ivory" since there was "consensus around taking measures to stop it".
CITES members had presented 67 proposals for and against a total
trade ban, he told reporters in Geneva.
One was a call by four nations -- Burkina Faso, Kenya, Mali and Togo
-- for a blanket ban on ivory from all 38 countries in Africa where
elephants live until 2017. At present only four countries were affected
-- Namibia, Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe -- CITES said. Another
proposal, by Tanzania, would allow that country to sell 101 tonnes of
stockpiled ivory and also trade in elephant hunting trophies. Under
CITES rules, proposals are adopted by a two-thirds majority, Scanlon
said, adding that at the last global conference in Doha in 2010, 25 out
of 42 proposals got the green light. In addition to the bid to beef up
restrictions on the ivory trade, other members sought tougher measures
to protect the white rhino (Kenya), the white-tip shark (Colombia, US),
and manta ray (Ecuador).
The United States, meanwhile, pushed for a total halt in the trade of
polar bear parts and products, claiming that climate change had shrunk
the animal's natural habitat and it therefore qualified as an endangered
species.
The 176 member states will also get a chance to vote on proposals to
boost the protection of hammerhead sharks and the porbeagle fish -- both
narrowly defeated two years ago.
AFP |