New Delhi : The much awaited verdict on the fate of the eight Asian elephants stationed in the southern province of Thailand has finally arrived with the Australian Environment Minister Ian Campbell giving the green signal to Sydney and Melbourne Zoos to transport these animals to Australia -much to the astonishment and discontent of conservation organizations across the globe.

Vivek Menon Executive Director Wildlife Trust of India says, “This decision will not directly affect India but it will certainly create a precedence that is not good for Asian elephants. There is a risk that other countries may well follow suit with this example”

The Australian zoo officials have reportedly spent huge amounts of money on the project-for captive breeding program of these animals. Roof tiles from Thailand worth million dollars were reportedly bought from Thailand , besides a huge sum spent for the entire facility.

Referring to the newly constructed facility for the elephants, Menon says, “These animals will suffer to some extent. You can minimize suffering, you can’t eliminate suffering. And I’m here not saying that Australian zoos treat these animals badly. I think Australian zoos try to treat these animals as well as they can. But what I’m trying to get across is the elephant, as a species, is not for captivity”

Conservation organizations and elephant experts argue that captive breeding of Asian elephants is not viable as it requires large moving space for the elephants and the concerned zoos do not have such space. There is also reportedly a high incidence of infant mortality of elephants in captivity, which is 20% of all live births of Asian elephants in the zoos.

Elephant experts also pointed out that in captivity elephants develop abnormal symptoms due to lack of sufficient exercise that they would normally have got in abundance in the wild. They tend to develop repetitive behaviors such as swaying and head bobbing. These experts also opine that elephants are social animals and do not reciprocate well especially when they are brought form different herds and kept in a zoo environment. They live in highly developed social groupings where strong family relationships are prominent. Moreover the zoos in the west are relying heavily on the success of artificial insemination techniques to boost their breeding program; these are highly invasive practices for the animals in question and remain highly experimental.

According to Rebecca Brand, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), “This program is fundamentally flawed. It’s highly ambitious and it’s unlikely to succeed”

Mark Bannerman a reporter at Australian Broadcasting Corporation says, “And there is one another issue at the heart of this argument and it is right here-baby elephants. No Australian zoo has ever managed to breed an Asian elephant in captivity”

Refuting such claims by the conservation organizations and elephant experts, Guy Cooper Chief Executive of Taronga Zoo says, “This is one of the greatest things I believe that Taronga has done in its 90 year history. This has been a cake that’s been baked for something like nine months, so it was a great thrill, I think not only a great thrill for our staff, but we also think it was great for the wider Australian community. The reason that no Asian elephant has ever been breed in Australasia is simply because nobody has ever tried. So what we’re doing this time around is putting in place some of the best facilities that you can ever create”

However arguments and counter-arguments between the parties are expected to continue and are not over as yet, as the animal rights organizations IFAW, Humane Society International Australia (HSI), Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) and represented by the Environmental Defenders Office Ltd (EDO) moved to Administrative Appeal Tribunal for an injunction in the case and to stall the announcement till the Appeal court finally comes with a decision. The Australian government’s decision to import the eight Asian elephants from Thailand to Sydney and Taronga zoo was made public yesterday at a press conference by Senator Ian Campbell Minister Environment and Heritage.

With this new twist in the tale the destiny of these eight elephants still hangs in uncertainty. Dr. Ashraf Director Wild Rescue Wildlife Trust of India says, “The best way for any conservation program of Asian elephants is to take appropriate intervention in their respective home range countries, where securing the elephant habitats and minimizing the man-elephant conflicts would be the most pertinent intervention for a long term conservation solution to Asian elephants”

Pictures: Vivek Menon/ WTI