The Dark Side of Elephant Tourism

By Tayani van Eeden

In 2013, barely out of university and beyond South African borders for the first time, I went to live in Thailand. Five months into my adventure, I interviewed for a job in Isaan, the most rural province in Thailand. The head teacher took me for dinner that night to experience some of the local lifestyle, and while we were eating, he suddenly pointed outside and exclaimed, “Look, our resident elephant! She walks around town with her owner some nights. You can even buy some fruit to feed her.” He was so enthusiastic, I felt immediately at peace with the situation. This is exactly the kind of thing I was looking for in Thailand. Elephants roaming the streets. I bought fruit, posed for a picture with the elephant, and forgot all about it.
A few months later, I was in northern Thailand and considering going on an elephant
trek, but a close friend messaged me and begged me not to do it. I was defensive, telling her that I had been assured the elephants are treated humanely. Fighting ignorance with education, she sent me links to articles describing the brutal physical and emotional torture that baby elephants suffer in order for their spirits to be broken in a process known as “the crush.” Isolated from their mothers, tied to cold cement floors and beaten with bull hooks, the elephants learn to fear the sight of the hooks in the hands of mahouts (elephant trainers) from a young age. Once their spirits have been broken, they are forced to carry enormous saddles and up to three people on their backs – much more weight than their spines can handle. There is clearly no humanity in the training of elephants. Mahouts are very skilled at convincing you that what they do is humane because their livelihoods depend on it.
I very easily could have continued on in ignorance if someone had not forced me to question my own harmful actions. I recently returned to Thailand for vacation so that I could visit a famous sanctuary for rescued elephants called Elephant Nature Park. On my first day, I was reminded of the night I happily posed for a photograph with an elephant. Such street elephants are forced to walk down bustling city roads for the delight of tourists—and the mahouts’ wallets. The lights and vibrations of the cars and motorcycles cause great anxiety for the elephants, many only babies. I remembered the photo I had taken and felt deeply ashamed of my ignorance.
I considered digging through my Facebook posts and deleting this shame discretely. Then, I remembered how grateful I had been that someone had taken the time to set me on the right path, and decided that I would do the same for others. I know that many people have been in the same situation—especially those who have visited Thailand and its neighbor countries. This article is not meant to judge, but to serve as a gentle reminder that everyone should research establishments that involve animals before blindly supporting them. Being in a beautiful, exotic country where everything seems strange and wonderful can dull our instincts. Expatriates are a community of tourists, and we should advocate for the spread of #responsibletourism.

For more information on how to visit or volunteer at Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, check out http://www.elephantnaturepark.org. Spots fill quickly. Be sure to book in advance.