Kaavan’s ordeal set to end

Senate panel recommends to send 32-year-old lone elephant to a sanctuary abroad

ISLAMABAD: The long ordeal for Kaavan is set to end as a parliamentary panel recommends retirement of the lone elephant in Islamabad Zoo and sending him to the wild abroad.

The Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat on Monday recommended that the 32-year old behaviourally-challenged elephant should be sent to an accredited sanctuary abroad.

The decision was praised by animal welfare activists who attended the proceedings of the committee on special invitation.

“This is a huge step forward for animal welfare in Pakistan. Now, we hope that Kaavan will finally be free after 30 years of neglect and isolation,” said Samar Khan, a US national of Pakistani-origin, who first took notice of the issue during her visit to the zoo, last year.

Khan had then launched an online petition demanding the authorities to unchain and free Kaavan.

The petition has so far secured over 400,000 signatures from across the globe.

The panel discussed the unending plight of the elephant and concluded that he should be retired for rehabilitation.

The Senate took up the matter, following national and international outcry, over the miserable condition the elephant has been kept in and referred the matter to the panel.



However, Capital Administration and Development Division Federal Minister Tariq Fazl Chaudhry, who is currently making efforts to outsource the affairs of the Islamabad Zoo to a private firm, opposed the idea.

At one point, he even took the animal welfare activists by surprise, when he claimed Kaavan is healthy and not suffering from any psychological problems.

Chaudhry argued that a female elephant can be brought for Kaavan’s company, from Sri Lanka, and that the zoo can be further developed. “Tenders have already been published for this purpose,” he informed the panel.

However, Senator Tahir Mashhadi dubbed the claim as frivolous and said the animal would die by the time the government completes the project in 2025.

The 32-year-old Asian elephant, Kaavan, has been kept in solitary confinement and has been chained by the legs, since his long-term companion, Saheli – a female elephant gifted by the government of Bangladesh to Pakistan in the early 90s – died in May 2012.

Kaavan was brought from Sri Lanka in 1985 when he was a year old.

The elephant is believed to have become depressed after Saheli’s death. The zoo management then chained him by all four of his legs to contain him, instead of providing the elephant with medical treatment or trying to find him another companion.

However, when the issue caught the attention of local and foreign media, the zoo officials removed the chains from his legs. However, due to cruel training practices, the elephant has developed behavioural problems.

Recently, in a fit of rage, Kaavan broke the boundary wire of his enclosure.

Senator Samina Abid informed the committee that international organisations working for animal welfare have already booked a place for Kaavan in a sanctuary located in Myanmar.

The senator said a number of organisations have promised to bear the transportation cost.

Many celebrities, including American singer and actor Cher, have been part of the campaign aimed to free Kaavan.

“A country can be judged by the way it treats its animals. This is a milestone case for animal welfare in Pakistan,” said Faryal Gouhar who is spearheading the campaign to free Kaavan. She also held numerous protests in front of the zoo.

“After the Senate committee decision, Pakistan has sent a message to the world that it is conscious of the welfare of animals, especially the captive ones,” Sunny Jamil, another activist said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 26^th, 2016.