Campaign to kill practice of India's sloth bears dancing in streets wins
Source: AFP |
December 3, 2012, Monday
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Print Edition
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THE sight of poorly fed and badly treated bears being forced to dance on the streets of India is a thing of the past as a campaign to wipe out the practice has born fruit.
The tradition of forcing sloth bears to dance for entertainment dates back to the 13th century, when trainers belonging to the Muslim Kalandar tribe enjoyed royal patronage and performed before the rich and powerful.
Descendants of the tribe from central India had kept the tradition alive, buying bear cubs from poachers for about 1,200 rupees (US$22) and then hammering a heated iron rod through their sensitive snouts.
After removing the animal's teeth and claws, the bear trainer threaded a rope through its snout and then headed for the streets where onlookers would pay a few rupees for a show in which the bear would sway and jump around.
"It's taken us many years but all the tribesmen we keep track of have moved on to different livelihoods," said Vivek Menon from the non-profit conservation organization Wildlife Trust of India.
"The tradition might still be present in people's minds, of course, but we don't know of any cases where Kalandars are still practicing it."
The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and India-based Wildlife SOS, which runs sanctuaries for bears, have also declared an end to the practice in the last few months - 40 years after a government ban in 1972.
The key, say the donation-funded groups, has been bringing the Kalandars on board, providing them with money and incentives to re-train in other professions.
"It was very difficult to convince the trainers to give up their work. Most of them were very scared, they have never known any other way of life but this," WSPA campaign coordinator Aniruddha Mookerjee said.
One of the owners to give up was Mohammed Afsar Khan, a 30-year-old father of three girls who used to work with his father and brother travelling across central India with three bears in tow.
He said he earned about 300 rupees a day until he gave up the job six years ago.
He handed over his bears to WTI officers, who offered his family financial assistance and helped him and his younger brother learn driving skills.
He used the funds to rent a tractor and ferry bricks from kilns to construction sites in Chhattisgarh state. Today, he owns his tractor and earns about 500 rupees a day.
The bears recovered by the animal groups were often suffering from infected snouts, root canal problems, even diseases such as tuberculosis they contracted from humans. They also suffer from malnutrition after being fed bread, lentils and milk for years, leading to a reduced life span.
Menon from WTI say that the dancing bear industry was also "a dominant cause behind the disappearance of the sloth bear." In the last three decades, the number of sloth bears - a species native to South Asia - has fallen by at least 30 percent, according to the Bear Specialist Group. There are now less than 20,000 of them.
"India is changing rapidly and this is an outmoded, inhumane tradition. The trainers themselves realize now that it is far easier for them to earn a living doing other jobs," Menon said.
The tradition of forcing sloth bears to dance for entertainment dates back to the 13th century, when trainers belonging to the Muslim Kalandar tribe enjoyed royal patronage and performed before the rich and powerful.
Descendants of the tribe from central India had kept the tradition alive, buying bear cubs from poachers for about 1,200 rupees (US$22) and then hammering a heated iron rod through their sensitive snouts.
After removing the animal's teeth and claws, the bear trainer threaded a rope through its snout and then headed for the streets where onlookers would pay a few rupees for a show in which the bear would sway and jump around.
"It's taken us many years but all the tribesmen we keep track of have moved on to different livelihoods," said Vivek Menon from the non-profit conservation organization Wildlife Trust of India.
"The tradition might still be present in people's minds, of course, but we don't know of any cases where Kalandars are still practicing it."
The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and India-based Wildlife SOS, which runs sanctuaries for bears, have also declared an end to the practice in the last few months - 40 years after a government ban in 1972.
The key, say the donation-funded groups, has been bringing the Kalandars on board, providing them with money and incentives to re-train in other professions.
"It was very difficult to convince the trainers to give up their work. Most of them were very scared, they have never known any other way of life but this," WSPA campaign coordinator Aniruddha Mookerjee said.
One of the owners to give up was Mohammed Afsar Khan, a 30-year-old father of three girls who used to work with his father and brother travelling across central India with three bears in tow.
He said he earned about 300 rupees a day until he gave up the job six years ago.
He handed over his bears to WTI officers, who offered his family financial assistance and helped him and his younger brother learn driving skills.
He used the funds to rent a tractor and ferry bricks from kilns to construction sites in Chhattisgarh state. Today, he owns his tractor and earns about 500 rupees a day.
The bears recovered by the animal groups were often suffering from infected snouts, root canal problems, even diseases such as tuberculosis they contracted from humans. They also suffer from malnutrition after being fed bread, lentils and milk for years, leading to a reduced life span.
Menon from WTI say that the dancing bear industry was also "a dominant cause behind the disappearance of the sloth bear." In the last three decades, the number of sloth bears - a species native to South Asia - has fallen by at least 30 percent, according to the Bear Specialist Group. There are now less than 20,000 of them.
"India is changing rapidly and this is an outmoded, inhumane tradition. The trainers themselves realize now that it is far easier for them to earn a living doing other jobs," Menon said.
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