A small elephant collapsed in the street at Krathumban Market west of Bangkok after the owner reportedly forced it to walk through the market as he collected money for people to feed it.
The video of the stricken elephant in Samut Prakarn province, captioned “Tired elephant forced to walk,” was uploaded to Facebook last night and upset many unhappy with how the elephant was treated.
“It could not stand anymore,” the user who took the video said. “When the mahout saw me take photos, he forced it to get up and leave, so I took a video.”
Meanwhile, others have condemned the shop owner at the market who ordered the mahout to move the elephant instead of helping it.
“Dear elephant owner, please take your elephant out of the market,” someone announces in the video. “You’re blocking the shop front.”
Chollada Sawala, secretary of Friend of The Asian Elephant Foundation, said this morning that many people submitted the video to the organization, but there’s nothing it can do as there are no laws protecting the welfare of animals.
At most, the mahout could be gently fined THB1,000 for animal cruelty, and/or face a one-month jail term, according to Morning News.
Bangkok and Rayong are the only two provinces in the country which forbid mahouts to take elephants into the streets, Chollada added.
Photo: Degree Bangbang
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