SAENGDUEAN LEK CHAILERT      

* 6. October 1961 in Baan Lao, North Thailand  

Lek (Thai for “small”) is a highly acclaimed animal rights activist who is particularly dedicated to the welfare and protection of Asian elephants.
In 2003, she founded the Elephant Nature Park near Chiang Mai, where she takes in mistreated animals and provides them with a natural and as-free-as-possible environment.

The rescued elephants are often traumatised and frequently suffer from severe physical injuries. Some have serious disabilities caused by gruelling work in the logging industry, in circuses, or as riding animals for tourists; some are blind from the harsh spotlights used in circuses.
At Elephant Nature Park, the animals are no longer forced to do anything and are never punished.

Lek also creates jobs for the local population, who grow vegetables and fruit for the animals and the many staff members working at the park.

However, through her activism and educational work, Lek has also made enemies. The conservative and ruthless elephant mafia feared losing their profits. They threatened Lek with death and killed one of her elephants with poison. The Thai government did nothing about it — on the contrary, they attacked and threatened Lek as well.

Nevertheless, she refused to be deterred and continues to work for and with the elephants, raising international awareness of their suffering.

I myself visited an elephant camp near Chiang Mai several years ago. Unaware of how exploitative these camps can be, we ended up in a park where the animals were neither cared for appropriately nor treated with affection. It was dreadful, and we cut our visit short.

So here is an appeal to anyone considering visiting an elephant camp in Thailand: please look closely! If, for example, you can ride the elephants, it is better to look elsewhere. It is neither natural nor humane. Thanks to Lek, more and more elephant camp operators are fortunately changing course and opting for a different and better approach.

“Through torture, the will of elephants is broken. We are searching for ways to heal the physical and emotional wounds.”