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50년의 감금 생활 동안에 라주는 음식을 제대로 먹지도 못하고 체인에 묶여 살았다. 체인이 살을 파고들 정도로 묶여있었으며 음식은 관광객들이 주는 것을 가끔 받아먹고는 했다. 나중에는 너무 배가 고파 플라스틱과 종이를 먹고 버텼다고 전해졌다.
라주의 “주인”은 라주가 지나가는 행인들에게 동전을 구걸하라고 훈련시켰다. 체인을 벗어났던 적도 한 번도 없었고 제대로 된 잠자리도 없었으며 꼬리털을 뽑아 행운을 가져다 주는 고리 (good luck charm)로 만들어 팔기도 했다.
코끼리는 덩치가 클 뿐만 아니라 매우 똑똑한 동물이기 때문에 슬픔의 감정을 느낄 수 있어 50년의 감금생활이 얼마나 끔찍한지 짐작할 수 있다고 이 자선단체 사람들은 말한다.
“와일드라이프 SOS” 는 라주의 감금사실을 알게 된지 1년이 지난 7월 4일 밤에 구조작전을 펼쳤다. 1년 동안 구조작전을 계획하고 법적 절차 문제를 해결한 후 “주인”이 라주를 소유할 수 있는 법적인 서류가 없었다는 사실을 알고 쉽게 구조할 수 있었다.
이 자선단체는 라주에게 사람들이 잔인하지만 않다는 걸 알려주는게 오랜 시간이 걸릴거라 예상되지만 라주를 안전한데서 돌보고 때가되면 보호시설이 있는 동료 코끼리들과 가족같이 지낼 수 있게 하겠다고 밝혔다.
(코리아헤럴드 조한나 인턴기자 hnncho@heraldcorp.com)
(사진 출처: 유투브 캡쳐)
<관련 영문 기사>
Heartbreaking story: Elephant cries as released after 50 year of abuse
An elephant named Raju, who was held in chains for half a century in India, was released by charity group Wildlife SOS. It has been reported that Raju cried tears of joy and relief as he was freed, according to the Daily Mail.
For over 50 years, Raju lived in chains and was given no food. He survived on candy and handouts from tourists, and eventually began eating paper and plastic out of hunger and exhaustion.
Raju’s “owner” forced him to “hold his trunk and beg for a few coins” from tourists, according to reports. He was chained up 24 hours a day and didn‘t even have proper shelter. The owner also ripped out hair from his tail to sell as good luck charms.
It’s not exactly known how Raju was captured, but the animal charity believes that he was poached from his mother as a small baby. When a young animal is taken, they are often beaten cruelly until they listen to the owner.
“Elephants are highly intelligent creatures, who can feel grief. So we can only imagine what torture half a century has been like for him,” said the charity’s U.K. spokesperson.
It took one year for Wildlife SOS to free Raju, due to planning and legal reasons. It was only after they found out that the owner didn’t have any papers for the elephant that they could free him immediately.
The owner tried to prevent the rescue but luckily, the charity was able to free him without much problems. It was as if Raju knew that the people weren’t going to harm him and at the end he cried tears of joy.
Wildlife SOS told reporters that it’s not going to be easy to show Raju that not all people are cruel and it will take a long time. But they think that Raju can one day join the rest of the elephants at the sanctuary.
By Cho Han-na, Intern reporter (hnncho@heraldcorp.com)
Heartbreaking story: Elephant cries as released after 50 year of abuse
An elephant named Raju, who was held in chains for half a century in India, was released by charity group Wildlife SOS. It has been reported that Raju cried tears of joy and relief as he was freed, according to the Daily Mail.
For over 50 years, Raju lived in chains and was given no food. He survived on candy and handouts from tourists, and eventually began eating paper and plastic out of hunger and exhaustion.
Raju’s “owner” forced him to “hold his trunk and beg for a few coins” from tourists, according to reports. He was chained up 24 hours a day and didn‘t even have proper shelter. The owner also ripped out hair from his tail to sell as good luck charms.
It’s not exactly known how Raju was captured, but the animal charity believes that he was poached from his mother as a small baby. When a young animal is taken, they are often beaten cruelly until they listen to the owner.
“Elephants are highly intelligent creatures, who can feel grief. So we can only imagine what torture half a century has been like for him,” said the charity’s U.K. spokesperson.
It took one year for Wildlife SOS to free Raju, due to planning and legal reasons. It was only after they found out that the owner didn’t have any papers for the elephant that they could free him immediately.
The owner tried to prevent the rescue but luckily, the charity was able to free him without much problems. It was as if Raju knew that the people weren’t going to harm him and at the end he cried tears of joy.
Wildlife SOS told reporters that it’s not going to be easy to show Raju that not all people are cruel and it will take a long time. But they think that Raju can one day join the rest of the elephants at the sanctuary.
By Cho Han-na, Intern reporter (hnncho@heraldcorp.com)
