THE National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) yesterday lamented the decision by the director of public prosecutions in Grahamstown not to pursue animal cruelty charges against the Elephants of Eden park in Knysna.
The case was opened in May 2014 “after the NSPCA received horrific footage depicting the cruel and abusive training methods employed to control and train baby and young elephants for their future‚ captive lives in the elephant-based tourist industry”.
The animal welfare group said it had been informed last Monday that the prosecuting authority “had not been persuaded that the training methods employed indeed constituted cruel treatment and/or caused unnecessary suffering to the elephants involved”.
“We are shocked and don’t feel that justice has been served‚” senior inspector Isabel Wentzel said.
“The facts have been disregarded‚ despite the factual evidence as well as the supporting evidence of national and international elephant specialists who confirmed the excessive and extensive physiological and psychological injuries suffered by the elephants.
“The elephants showed signs of severely swollen legs and feet‚ debilitating abscesses and wounds resulting from the abusive use of ropes‚ chains and bull hooks – injuries sustained at Elephants of Eden.”
The NSPCA statement said that it “remains opposed to the removal of elephants from the wild and taming them for lifelong captivity”.
This story appeared in Weekend Post on Saturday, 21 November, 2015 e-Edition |
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