Kuala Gandah — elephant shelter or jumbo torment - video Dailymotion

Free Malaysia Today

While the sanctuary has been promoted as a safe haven for the pachyderms, some visitors have painted a very troubling picture of activities within.   Story by Greta Bagdonaite, an undergraduate at City, St George’s, University of London, and an intern at FMT.   Read More:  https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2025/07/11/kuala-gandah-elephant-shelter-or-jumbo-torment   Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com  Follow FMT on Facebook: https://bit.ly/49JJoo5  Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM  Follow FMT on X: https://bit.ly/48zARSW  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/48Cq76h  Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3uKuQFp  Follow FMT Berita on TikTok: https://bit.ly/48vpnQG  Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/42VyzMX  Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://Ábit.ly/42YytEb  Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/42WrsUj  Follow FMT on WhatsApp: https://bit.ly/49GMbxW  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Download FMT News App:  Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46  App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ  Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP   #FMTNews #KualaGandah #ElephantShelter #MalaysiasKrauWildlifeReserve

Transcript

00:00Tucked in the heart of Malaysia's Krau Wildlife Reserve lies the Koala Gander Elephant Sanctuary,

00:05a place celebrated for protecting the endangered Asian elephant.

00:09But beneath its noble mission, troubling questions have emerged.

00:13Is this truly a safe haven for these majestic creatures, or something far less humane?

00:19Established in 1989 by Malaysia's Wildlife Department, Koala Gander has relocated over

00:24700 wild elephants, saving them from extinction and protecting local agriculture.

00:29But recent online reviews paint a grim picture, calling it a torture spectacle and an exploitative

00:35nightmare, sparking serious concerns about the welfare of these gentle giants.

00:40Complaints claim bullhooks and chains are used to control the elephants' movements,

00:44with visitors witnessing swaying and head bobbing, signs commonly associated with deep distress.

00:50The sanctuary promotes river bathing with elephants as fun activities for tourists,

00:54but animal welfare groups warn they are stressful, risky and potentially deadly.

00:59Rajesh Nagarajan, President of Environmental Group PECA, called Koala Gander a site of deeply troubling

01:05exploitation that betrays the sanctuary's mission of care.

01:09Elephants are routinely chained on concrete slabs, deprived of free movement and forced to perform for

01:15visitors under the threat of physical punishment. These practices are in direct contradiction to the

01:21sanctuary's stated mission of rescue and rehabilitation. This is not conservation,

01:26it is cruelty dressed up as tourism. Demands are growing for reform, end public performances,

01:32ban bullhooks and chains and shift to an observation only model. For the Koala Gander Elephant Sanctuary,

01:38the time for ethical, evidence-based conservation is now. Greta Bogdanaita, FMT.

Kuala Gandah — elephant shelter or jumbo torment

Category

Transcript

Recommended