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The 37-year-old, nearly five-ton pachyderm has traveled the nearly 4,000 kilometers separating Islamabad Airport from Siem Reap, the Cambodian city closest to the Kulen Prom Tep sanctuary, where it will be introduced and where it will live with hundreds of elephants and wild animals
The elephant Kaavan, known as the loneliest in the world after living 35 years in seclusion in a zoo in Pakistan, arrived in Cambodia on Monday, where he will spend the rest of his life in a sanctuary after a campaign led by American actress Cher , who received this 30-N at the airport.
The 37-year-old, nearly five-ton pachyderm has traveled the nearly 4,000 kilometers separating Islamabad Airport from Siem Reap, the Cambodian city closest to the Kulen Prom Tep sanctuary, where it will be introduced and where it will live with hundreds of elephants and wild animals
Upon arrival, a group of rope-assisted operators lowered the container from the Russian cargo plane it had traveled on, stopping in Delhi for refueling.
North American actress and singer Cher, dressed in a black mask and a welcome sign, waited for the pachyderm with local authorities and witnessed the blessing that Buddhist monks made of the container.
“We have counted the days and dreamed of this moment for a long time and finally seeing Kaavan out of the zoo will be a memory that will remain with us forever,” said the singer in a statement on Sunday, who spent the last few days together in the Pakistani capital with his organization Free the Wild, before flying to Cambodia.
Quarantine before socializing
At first, Kaavan will live alone in quarantine and when he is ready to socialize he will be allowed to join other elephants in the wild within the nature reserve.
As the Cambodian Ministry of Environment indicated on Monday, when he feels comfortable in a controlled environment, Kaavan will be released into the sanctuary, where some 600 Asian elephants live.
The title of loneliest elephant in the world has been bestowed upon him by groups of animals who, led by Cher, have been claiming a better home for years than the decrepit Pakistani zoo where he has been alone since his companion Saheli died in 2012.
The loneliness and harsh conditions in which he lived undermined his health and he suffered from overweight, malnutrition and mental problems.
Managers from Four Paws International, which handled the pachyderm relocation, and Free the Wild activists hope these ailments will improve when integrated into the Kulen Prom Tep reservation.
Located in northern Cambodia, close to the Thai border, Kulen Prom Tep is one of Cambodia’s most biodiverse nature reserves and has survived the deforestation the country has suffered in recent decades.
A fate in the air
Kaavan’s fate has been in the air for years. In 2016, the Pakistani parliament recommended that the elephant, an official gift from the Sri Lankan government in 1985, be released in a sanctuary due to its poor condition, good intentions that led to nothing.
But animal rights activists launched a campaign to release the pachyderm, which was ultimately successful.
The life expectancy of an Asian elephant exceeds 50 years, although according to a study by the journal Science in 2008, those in captivity tend to have shorter lives.
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