Company representative Jason Loh responded to allegations by Foto that the company is currently in possession of a solitary male elephant used for rides, that is chained for long hours when the rides end at the end of the day.
“We condemn the allegations and assumptions made by Foto and Nature Alert as exaggerated slander, especially when one takes into consideration that neither Mr Singh nor Mr Whyte did not so much as attempt to contact our organisation, let alone request a clarification,” said Loh.
Foto Director Upreshpal Singh had called the treatment of elephant Lasah “the worst form of elephant abuse we have had the misfortune to come across”.
“Lasah is used and abused for tourist money. We were shocked to find him barbarically chained on all four legs when he isn’t being exploited,” Upreshpal had said.
Sean Whyte, CEO of British group Nature Alert, had also denounced the abuse and the use of elephants to carry tourists.
Loh, however, explained that Lasah is a 36-year-old elephant that they first encountered in 1998, first used for logging activities in Kelantan.
It has a medical condition that has “bugged us since” that requires them to occasionally prevent sores under the supervision of its veterinarian.
“Lasah is not always chained as depicted and this allegation has been taken out of context. This is a situation which could have been avoided had we been engaged first instead,” Loh said.
“In fact — if Mr Singh or Mr Whyte had visited and queried us –– we do not use any form of restraint at his daytime holding area.
“He is free to move between the platform and feeding stations without any provocation.
“We wish that these NGOs would at least engage with our Malaysian zoos first prior to making allegations.
“Of course, perhaps we do realise also that NGOs such as these need to generate funding for their activities and arguably need to raise as much of a stink as possible.”
Loh also added that they could not do much about the hot Malaysian weather conditions, “short of installing a giant air conditioner next to Mat Chinchang at the summit of the adjacent mountain”.
“Furthermore, Lasah’s trails are under full cover of a secondary rainforest and, with regular showers in the hottest times of the day, he is kept cool,” Loh said.
Loh pointed out that Langkawi experienced an unusual but extended period of dry weather this year, extending by more than two months into May.
Loh dismissed allegations that they conducted long treks with Lasah, saying that they only conduct a limited number of short rides under a forest canopy.
“Lasah is not permitted to ride more than three hours a day,” he said.
“Each ‘adventure’ ends with the positive reinforcement of a feed of fruit and almost all guests visiting will extend him a treat as well.”
He called on the National Resources and Environment Ministry and Perhilitan to support the “overburdened” National Park, where conflict elephants have been translocated to since the 1970s.
“The NRE and Perhilitan should perhaps turn some attention towards supporting these parks to revive and promote Malaysia’s rich history in elephants,” he said.