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(12) Protection of Yunan's Wild Elephants
[CND, 02/01/98] Thanks to an enlightened education program and stringent
protection policies, Chinese naturalists have succeeded in saving the wild
elephants of Yunan's tropical rainforests from the encroachment of humans,
according to Xinhua and AFP.
The elephants live in Xishuangbanna Natural Reserve, 240,000 hectares of
protected parkland, though they occasionally trample the crops grown by
people from the 114 villages in the region.
Some fourteen years ago, there were angry villagers bent on protecting
their property at all costs and only 197 elephants remaining in the
rainforest. Now, according to Wang Zhangqiang, the deputy director of
Xishuangbanna Natural Reserve, there are 250 elephants and villagers who
take pride in them.
The friendliness of the villagers towards the elephants has habitated the
animals even more. The local government has set up a compensation fund
for farmers who lose their crops to strolling elephants. (Sue BRUELL, Ray
ZHANG)