By Nicola Gothard

Since I wrote the last article much has happened over in Thailand.  A famous Thai musician went down to WFFT to show his support which held up proceedings for a day but culminated in his arrest. The DNP then went away for a long weekend and returned with a vengeance. More armed guards than ever camped out on WFFT grounds and the Director General arrived on site in a helicopter. Despite promising on National Television that he would leave WFFT alone once he had seen the paperwork, he then deemed that he wasn’t happy with the animal welfare at WFFT and the DNP proceeded to confiscate animals. This is laughable, considering the conditions most wild animals are kept in Thailand and the state of the DNP ‘rescue’ centres (example).

They started with the sun bears – this is interesting considering they are of high commercial value in the illegal wildlife trade! By the time I woke up this morning they had drowned a macaque in their clumsy, inexperienced attempts to capture it! In total yesterday, 54 animals were cruelly snatched away from their homes including; 26 macaques,11 gibbons, 5 bears, 8 leopard cats, 1 otter, 2 oriental pied hornbill and 1 great hornbill.

I can’t imagine the stress this is putting on all the animals, staff and volunteers at WFFT! It make me so angry that these animals have been rescued from animal abuse once  and are now suffering as pawns in a game of retribution!

Actions

Today I think we should focus on tourism in Thailand. The Department of National Parks is clearly corrupt or on a vendetta against WFFT from the bottom to the top of the department. So, we need to force their hand using another, more powerful, government department. Tourism is a huge part of the Thai economy and they will care what the world thinks of Thailand!

1.   Tweet your views on the wildlife raid to @ThailandFanClub and don’t forget to use the hashtag #ThaiWildLifeRaid

2. Post your views on the wildlife raid on the Tourism Thailand Facebook wall https://www.facebook.com/AmazingThailand

3. Send a message via the contact form on the Tourism Thailand website http://www.tourismthailand.org/contact-us

4. This is a link to the resource centre set up to help people find information and take action for WFFT. If you are interested in finding out more or taking further action then please visit http://www.wix.com/anoelle45/wffthelp#!

By Nicola Gothard

The Department of National Parks in Thailand have been carrying out raids on NGO sanctuaries after an ‘anonymous’ tip off about animal cruelty and holding animals without the correct paperwork.

WFFT, a well respected wild animal rescue centre, was ambushed by National Park officials and given 3 hours to present the paperwork for 450 animals. They then proceeded to arrest staff and confiscate the animals. The same thing happened at Elephant Nature Park and several other smaller NGOs.  The animals are being man handled and mistreated by National Park staff, then loaded on to trucks in tiny cages, whilst the volunteers and staff at the sanctuary look on in horror. In a further ludicrous act the confiscated wildlife were taken to profit making, run down zoos. Hundreds of animals which have already had a rough life are now scared and suffering unnecessarily.

Why not raid trekking operators or zoos or even confiscate all the poor animals used for tourist photos on beaches? Well, probably because they didn’t vocalise their concern about recent elephant poaching in National Parks. It is believed that certain people in the  forestry department were involved in this activity and the raids are an act of retribution for the NGOs implicating the forestry department in these crimes.

WFFT Thailand is a well respected animal sanctuary in Thailand that has been rescuing abused wildlife and assisting wild animals in need for many years. Elephant Nature Park rescues begging elephants, performing elephants and elephants used for trekking and provides them with a natural sanctuary where they don’t have to perform and are free to behave as elephants should.

The raids have been going on for four days now – causing immense distress to all concerned. We need to make Thailand aware that the world is watching and their tourism industry will suffer if they allow these kinds of corrupt heavy handed tactics to continue.

Actions

1.  Tweet  with this hashtag #ThaiWildlifeRaid – lets make the whole world aware of what is going on!

2. Sign this petition http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/urgent-plea-for-rescued-thai-wildlife/

3. Email the Director General of National Parks in Thailand  @ dg@dnp.go.th

4.Write to your Thai Embassy to make your feelings on the matter clear!

His Excellency Mr Kitti Wasinondh
Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary
Royal Thai Embassy
29-30 Queen’s Gate
London
SW7 5JB

Email: thaiduto@btinternet.com

Concerned individuals outside of the UK will find the relevant contact details for their Thai Embassy athttp://www.thaiembassy.org/www.thaiembassy.org/

Lets do this people!!

By Nicola Gothard

Recently PETA filed a law suit against Seaworld claiming that they had imprisoned legal persons, namely 5 orcas, and this was against the 13th amendment of the United States constitution, which outlaws slavery and involuntary servitude.  Surprise, Surprise, today it was thrown out of court because it has not yet been established that Orcas are ‘persons’ in the legal sense of the word. Surely anyone in their right mind would know that the issue of ‘person-hood’ needed addressing first? Just because they believe it goes without saying doesn’t mean it does. If you are going to take the game in to the court-room then you need to play by the rules of society. It just seems like a huge waste of time and like most things with PETA, just an excuse for publicity. If animal protection could be advanced by miles of press clippings then PETA would have already won the battle.  They must adhere to the mantra of  ’all publicity is good publicity’.

Sometimes I wonder if PETA is actually an organisation run by people who would rather discredit animal rights as a concept and halt all progress in animal protection. There is no doubt about it, they give animal protection/rights/welfare a bad name.  Their extreme publicity stunts make a mockery of us all and more importantly do nothing to change people that don’t already share their views, the words ‘preaching to the converted’ spring to mind. But, hey what does it even matter?  They take the moral high ground, they get coverage and their supporters give them more money and so it goes on!!

Perhaps if they had consulted with or listened to these guys at  www.nonhumananimalrightsproject.org then they would have made better use of their resources, then again do they care?

Contributed by, Nicola Gothard

Orangutan Outreach along with several other small organisations based in Asia have started a rescue mission in Borneo. There are hundreds of orangutans kept in small private cages all over borneo. It appears that it is often the case that the mothers are shot for meat and the babies are sold as pets only to live a life of misery – tied up or trapped in tiny cages, suffering from parasites, malnourishment and psychological torment.

If you are interested in finding out more about the rescue mission and endevour to create a sanctuary for these animals – please read this blog. It is fascinating, awe inspiring and heart-breaking. The people involved in this are true heroes and we must support them.

If you have any veterinary experience or experience of looking after wild animals – please consider volunteering!