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Asian Elephants

Working Elephants
Their cruel exploitation

The elephant was first tamed in 2000B.C. in the ancient towns of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa in the Indus Valley, in what is now known as Pakistan.

WITHIN AGRICULTURE

The elephant is an efficient machine. It ploughs paddy fields, harvests coconuts and carries branches.

LOADING

The elephant is loaded and carries goods through the forest or across rivers.

THE UNEMPLOYED ELEPHANT

In Thailand all logging was forbidden in 1989, in order to protect the rainforest. Thousands of elephants and their mahouts became unemployed and they were left with few options:

• Forestry They work with illegal felling or are rented out for forestry in neighboring countries. In order to work longer and harder, the elephant is given amphetamine.

• Tourism Elephants and mahouts entertain tourists and sell elephant rides.

• Begging

THE CRUEL WAY OF TAMING

• the wild elephant is caught

• it is tied between trees to prevent it from moving

• when an elephant fails to obey, it is punished by strokes with an elephant hook on the trunk or behind the ears

• it is both starving and thirsty. At night the mahout gives the elephant treats in order to win its confidence

• once the elephant begins to accept its destiny, it gets a bath in the river

• after a couple of weeks the elephant is willing to co-operate

• after 2-3 years, the elephant is fully trained

THE WORKING DAY OF AN ELEPHANT

The elephant works 3 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon. It cannot be pressed too hard. It spends the rest of the day feeding in the rainforest. The forelegs are chained and it wears a bell around its neck to prevent it from walking away and to make it easy for the mahout to find it.

TOURISTS ON ELEPHANT BACK

In special elephant camps tourists can ride an elephant.

LOGGING

The elephant pulls heavy tree trunks through the forest and loads them onto trucks. It is able to walk through areas inaccessible to tractors and bulldozers.