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| Pic by Rukshan Abeywansha |
A hungry baby elephant was wandering through the forest, searching for something to eat. It saw a pumpkin in the middle of the scrubland. It looked tempting. The baby elephant tries to taste the pumpkin. It took the pumpkin by its trunk and put it inside its mouth. When it crunched the pumpkin, it suddenly blew inside its mouth. When the poor animal came to its senses, there was an unbearable pain in the place where its mouth used to be.
The baby elephant’s agony multiplied when it started feeling hunger and thirst. It moved to a water hole to quench its thirst thinking that it will stop this unbearable throbbing in its head. It took water from the water hole to its trunk and tried to put it inside its mouth, only to find that there was no mouth where it used to be. Apart from the great pain experienced due to wounds, the animal suffered further due to thirst and hunger. Unable to have food or water, the baby elephant starved to death.
This is the common sad story of elephants that fall victim to Hakka patas. “This is how Hakka Patas brings an end to an elephant’s life,” veterinarian Dr. Prithviraj Fernando said. “I have witnessed how elephants wounded by Hakka Patas suffer, unable to put water into its mouth. Hakka Patas is a horrible way of killing elephants. It undergoes immense suffering until it dies,” he stressed.
Unlike other methods used to control or kill animals considered as a threat to farming, the use of Hakka Patas is considered inhumane because the animals suffer and most often don’t die instantly. Hakka Patas is an explosive device made locally and hidden inside animal fodder by irate farmers or angry villagers as a method to protect themselves and their crop from wild animals. According to Dr. Fernando elephants aren’t the only animals to get killed by Hakka Patas. “Cattle and wild boar also get wounded by this. All these animals get wounded in their jaws. Either they die on the spot or starve to death because they have no mouth to eat,” he explained.
The Sri Lankan elephant population has fallen to almost 65 percent since the turn of the 19th century. The Department of Wildlife Conservation claimed that over 100 elephant deaths have been reported up to May this year, mostly due to human-elephant conflicts. Fourteen of these deaths were reported to be due to Hakka Patas injuries. “Hakka Patas is costing lots of elephant their lives and the numbers are on the rise,” Wildlife Conservation Department Media spokesperson told The Nation. It is reported that the villages in Padaviya, Kebithigollewa, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Mahawilachchiya areas practice this method.
“The elephants wounded by Hakka Patas cannot be cured. Our veterinary surgeons have attempted to treat such elephants. But all their efforts were in vain since the explosion causes severe damage to the elephant’s brain,” the spokesman lamented. Baby elephants are more likely to be injured by this dreadful method. They undergo immense suffering before they die from their wounds,” he added.
Elephants in Sri Lanka are mainly protected under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance, section 12, environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardena said bringing the legal aspects of the human elephant conflict into the focus. He added that apart from causing injury or death to an animal such as an elephant, the possession of explosives like Hakka Patas is also illegal. “According to the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance, causing injury or death or capturing or keeping a protected animal such as an elephant, intentionally or unintentionally is illegal and subjected to penalties. Even possession of explosive used in Hakka Patas or similar material without a warrant is considered an offense,” he explained.
However according to Gunawardena imposing laws to capture the culprits is not a solution. “We could strengthen this by empowering the Police or bringing up provincial committees to apprehend offenders. But this is not a solution to the problem. We should look for a holistic approach that could come up with a long term solution,” he opined. “My personal observation is that this is not a conflict between humans and elephants. If the elephants don’t have enough water or food, they should either come searching for it or they would die. This isn’t an issue which can be solved by building a fence with humans on one side and elephants on the other. It will work until the elephant finds a weak point in the fence to sneak in,” Gunawardena stressed.
Elephants aren’t the only party to face injustice in this conflict between elephants and humans. Farmers and villagers in the rural areas also face untold trouble due to elephant attacks. According to Wildlife Department statistics, 24 humans have fallen victim to elephant attacks in the first five months of 2013.
“Hakka Patas is undoubtedly an inhuman way of killing animals. But we should also consider the facts which force humans to engage in such an inhumane act,” pointed out Senior Lecturer at the Colombo University, Dr. Devaka Weerakoon. Dr. Weerakoon has been involved in elephant conservation for years. “When irate farmers act upon their anger they do not think about the consequences. It is their way of finding a solution to their problem,” he added.
Dr. Weerakoon also mentioned that making people aware of how elephants suffer would make farmers refrain from using Hakka Patas. “Awareness making is the most important thing we could do right now. If we could show people how these animals suffer through pictures or videos that might be effective,” he suggested.
When an issue arises, the usual course of action is to point fingers at the responsible authorities, which, in this case, is the Ministry of Wildlife Resources Conservation and the authorities that come under its purview. According Dr. Weerakoon the capability of the government is limited regarding this matter. “The government alone cannot find solutions for this issue. Even though the government has allocated money that doesn’t mean it is a solution. The 2,000 people working for the Department of Wildlife Conservation cannot fight for this alone. Each of us has a role to play,” he pointed out.
There are multiple aspects to finding solutions for the human elephant conflict. “The government can introduce insurances or compensation for farmers as a relief. Building fences can lead to more contradictory issues like feeding live stock or issues of property and land ownership. Creating awareness has high priority, but some media reports create misconceptions,” he reiterated.
However according to Dr. Weerakoon a long lasting solution for this problem cannot be introduced overnight. “We should look for a reasonable long term plan. But we cannot do this overnight. None of the plans we have today can provide long lasting solutions. Lengthy discussions should be carried out to find a reasonable, long lasting solution. It might take 10 to 15 years to get results, but we should start now,” he stressed.
Apart from the fact that they are an endangered species, the elephant is the only animal that has the honor of carrying the Dalada Karanduwa. Therefore the elephant is considered both sacred and majestic. Well aware of these facts, the authorities are apparently seeking solutions through ‘discussions’, though reasonable solutions have eluded them so far. Meanwhile elephants are falling victim to Hakka Patas on a daily basis.
Published on The Nation Newspaper on Sunday, 21 July 2013
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