A sad sight: Perhilitan officers carrying out investigations at the site where the elephant carcasses were found at Kampung Sri Timur, Kluang.
JOHOR BARU: Uncontrolled land exploration could lead to more human-elephant conflict, resulting in property damage and endangering lives, says animal activist Arie Dwi Andika.
The Malaysia Animal Association president said the deaths of four elephants in Kluang, Johor recently could have been prevented if the government and the community had played a more proactive role in protecting their environment.
“Those who live near areas where elephants roam should be more tolerant towards the animals; the elephants don’t know who owns the land or farms, they just see it as their habitat and feeding grounds.
“People living in these areas should take responsibility and instal electric fences if they want to farm.
“The government should also stop the issuance of new licences to open up land for plantations, especially if the move destroys animal habitats and doesn’t benefit society,” he said when contacted yesterday.
Arie said the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) should thoroughly investigate the elephant deaths to prevent similar cases from occurring.
Four elephants were killed after allegedly being poisoned in Kampung Sri Timur, Kahang, Kluang.
Meanwhile, Paloh assemblyman Lee Ting Han has advised the public not to take matters into their own hands when dealing with elephants.
“The four elephants are believed to have died from poisoning either on Friday night or this morning (yesterday).
“They consisted of one female and her male calf, and two other males.
“If villagers are having issues with elephants, they should report it to the Wildlife and National Parks Department, their village chief or the police,” he said when contacted.
Lee, who is also Johor investment, trade, consumer affairs and human resources committee chairman, said a veterinary team from Perhilitan would conduct a post-mortem on the elephants to find out the cause of death.
“We expect the post-mortem to be completed by tomorrow (today), but the chemical report will take at least two to three weeks.
“If the elephants were poisoned, the police will get involved,” he said.
He added that there had been reports of a herd of elephants in the area in recent weeks.
When asked whether the land belonged to any villagers, Lee said the elephant carcasses were found on untitled land.
“There are some crops grown by villagers, but this does not justify such a cruel action. It is very sad,” he added.
Johor Perhilitan director Aminuddin Jamin said the post-mortem would be crucial to determine how the elephants died.
“Johor Perhilitan is still investigating and will conduct the autopsy on the four elephants.
“The results, including chemical tests, will take two to three weeks.
“At this point, we cannot confirm that the elephants died from poisoning,” he said, urging the public not to take matters into their own hands.
Elephants could become aggressive and dangerous if they consumed something harmful, posing a serious risk to nearby residents, he added.
Earlier, a 90-second video was posted on WhatsApp showing dead elephants lying on the ground.
