I finally had a chance to interact with fellow Bangkokians who are passionate about the environment at the book launch of The Great Elephant Escape last night. The event seemed to be a joint effort of Bangkok’s Green Networking Days, Plant A Tree Today (PATT), the Elephant Nature Foundation in Chiang Mai (see also Elephant Nature Park), and the Bring the Elephant Home Foundation. Here’s some things that stuck in my mind.

“We’re fighting a losing battle.”

One person made it clear he did not understand why the mistreatment of a Thai national symbol, the elephant, is allowed. He’s a member of the Thai parliament and chair president of the Wild Elephant Research Fund, Mr. Kraisak Choonhaven set the tone for the night saying, “We’re fighting a losing battle.” He pointed to a number of things:

• No research or funding to study wild elephants
• Less than 2,000 wild elephants in Thailand and inbreeding is feared
  
• Presence of ‘taxi’ elephants or street-begging elephants walking city streets is greater than the number of wild elephants in their natural habitats
  

Later, the person probably most responsible for inspiring Antoinette van de Water to write The Great Elephant Escape captured everyone’s attention. She was introduced as ‘Lek’ a common nickname meaning smallest or youngest. Lek was not a model of ‘typical’ Thai beauty. She was small. She came from a poor hill tribe family (imagine the hill billy stigma, but worse). She did not own any land. She is as infamous to some as she is angelic to many. She was not even fluent in English. BUT her adamant determination and love of Asian elephants shatters all stereotypes and barriers. She founded the Elephant Nature Foundation and has been rescuing elephants and caring for them at her elephant sanctuary in Northern Thailand. Here are some things you may not know:

• DON’T feed elephants on the street! Elephants on the streets of Bangkok suffer from mental issues. They also suffer from many other ailments including: deafness, blindness, poor nutrition, shorter lives, kidney/digestion problems and death caused by diarrhea
• Buying elephant paintings supports a cycle of abuse and torture done to the elephant to train them to paint and other gimmicks which make them lucrative pets. SPREAD the word, STOP buying these products.

We also heard from Antoinette, the author of the book. She linked the exploitation of these animals to deforestation and began a dialogue with the audience reminding them that there are no easy answers. We still need more dialogue and more awareness about this issue. This is the goal of her fund raising efforts and new book which tells her personal experiences after deciding she would liberate two elephants.

While in Thailand remember to take time to appreciate these beautiful animals and support healthy interaction with elephants (not elephants playing soccer or other tricks).

The elephant IS a national treasure, play a role in preventing national tragedy. Visit the websites and continue to spread the word.

-Dwight Turner
Editor, In Search of Sanuk