Thai elephant Sak Surin enters a special container ahead of a six-hour flight to a new life at a conservation center in northern Thailand after 22 years in Sri Lanka where he suffered abuse and neglect. File photo by Chamila Karunarathne/EPA-EFE
July 3 (UPI) — A Thai elephant is recovering at a sanctuary near Chiang Mai in northern Thailand on Monday after being returned from Sri Lanka following a three-year campaign by animal rights activists who alleged the animal was being mistreated.
Muthu Raja, a 29-year-old male, who arrived Sunday aboard an Ilyushin IL-76 cargo plane at a cost of $554,000, was taken by truck to the Thai Elephant Conservation Center in neighboring Lampang Province where he was placed into 30-day quarantine, said caretaker natural resources and environment minister Varawut Silpa-archa.
The elephant, renamed Sak Surin, appeared normal when he arrived at the center, Vrawat said, but was being assessed by a team of vets and other specialists.
Center director Suratchai Inwiset said Monday that Sak Surin appeared fresh and was feeding well with normal bowel movements.
Thailand had demanded the return of the animal, one of three Bangkok gifted to Sri Lanka in 2001, after Sri Lankan elephant rights group Rally for Animal Rights and Environment claimed it suffered years of abuse, including beatings, while being worked at a Buddhist temple in the south of the country.
San Surin was put to work in chains logging the forest and in temple processions and did not receive treatment for injuries sustained, according to RARE, which worked with former Thai deputy Education Minister Kanchana Silpa-archa to bring the elephant home.
“Thailand is taking ‘Pride of Surin’ back on July 2. As Sri Lankan animal lovers we must ensure that those responsible for his abuse and disrepute to our motherland are punished,” the group said on its Twitter page.
“We conveyed our gratitude to Ms. Kanchana Silpa Archa for saving Muthu Raja’s life and she conveyed her gratitude to us for exposing the cruelty to Muthu Raja and informing the Thai Government. She campaigned to rescue Muthu Raja in Thailand and is overlooking the transportation.”
The group said it had finally gone to the Thai government at the end of last year after complaining continuously to Sri Lankan authorities in 2020-2021, igniting a row that has strained relations between Bangkok and Colombo.
In June, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena told parliament relations with Thailand were back on track after he had apologized to Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn over the incident.
Exports of elephants were halted about three years ago, according to Verawut.
