Thai Elephant Returns to Birth Country After Diplomatic Spat
COLOMBO – A Thai elephant named Muthu Raja, who was gifted to Sri Lanka two decades ago, was flown back to its birth country on Sunday after a diplomatic dispute over alleged mistreatment. Thai authorities had gifted the 29-year-old elephant, also known as Sak Surin, to Sri Lanka in 2001. However, they demanded its return last year following allegations of torture and neglect while it was housed at a Buddhist temple in the southern region of the island nation.
The 8,800-pound mammal departed from Colombo airport on Sunday morning via a one-way commercial flight, costing Thai officials $700,000. The cargo plane, an Ilyushin IL-76, carrying Muthu Raja took off at approximately 7:40 am (0210 GMT), according to the airport manager. After landing in Chiang Mai, the elephant will undergo quarantine at a nearby nature reserve.
Muthu Raja was transported from its temporary home at a zoo in Colombo early in the morning, enclosed in a special steel cage the size of a shipping container. Alongside a Sri Lankan keeper, four Thai handlers accompanied the elephant on the flight, while two CCTV cameras monitored its health during transit.
Madusha Perera, the chief veterinarian at the Dehiwala Zoo, revealed that Muthu Raja was in pain and covered in abscesses when it was rescued from its previous abode last year. Animal welfare groups alleged that the elephant had been forced to work with a logging crew and that its wounds, some believed to have been inflicted by its handler, had been neglected. Upon its return to Thailand, Muthu Raja will undergo hydrotherapy to treat an injury on its front left leg, Perera added.
While elephants are considered sacred in Sri Lanka and are protected by law, the organization Rally for Animal Rights and Environment (RARE) expressed dissatisfaction with the elephant’s departure. RARE organized a Buddhist blessing for Muthu Raja on Friday before its journey and is currently petitioning the authorities to prosecute those responsible for the alleged neglect.
On Thursday, a nationalist group staged a demonstration outside the Thai embassy in Colombo, demanding that the elephant remain in Sri Lanka for another six months. The group’s leader, Dan Priyasad, told AFP, “We did not know about the plight of the elephant. We can nurse it back to health in six months, and if we fail, they can take the animal back.”
Thailand remained adamant in its demand for the elephant’s return, according to Wildlife Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi. Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena stated in June that he had personally conveyed Sri Lanka’s regrets to the Thai king regarding the elephant’s condition. Thailand’s Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa declined to comment last month on whether Muthu Raja had been mistreated but mentioned that the Thai government had ceased sending elephants abroad. Bangkok’s diplomatic missions are now assessing the condition of elephants already sent overseas.
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