Target: Teuku Riefky Harsya, Minister of Creative Economy, Republic of Indonesia
Goal: End elephant rides and allegedly violent training practices at tourist parks, and enforce strict welfare standards with independent inspections.
A disturbing undercover investigation by an animal-protection organization reportedly reveals elephants in Bali being beaten, starved, and kept in chains so that tourists can ride them and take photos. At facilities marketed as “rescues” and “sanctuaries,” including Bakas Adventure Elephant Safari and Rafting, Mason Elephant Park & Lodge, and the Bali Zoo, elephants are allegedly controlled with painful hooks, denied freedom of movement, and punished until they bleed. A former contractor at one park has reportedly described handlers withholding food and striking elephants hard to break their will so they submit to rides and tricks.
According to these accounts, elephants who do not respond to blunt hooks are jabbed with sharper ones “until the elephants are bleeding.” Off-hours, these highly social, intelligent animals are reportedly chained for long periods, isolated or confined in barren spaces, and constantly threatened with violence. Many of the elephants used in this industry were taken from their families as babies or bred into a life of permanent captivity, far removed from the forests and herds they need to thrive.
Such conditions, if accurately reported, are incompatible with any claim of “rescue” or “conservation.” Tourism built on fear and pain harms Indonesia’s international reputation and normalizes cruelty to one of the world’s most iconic species. Strong, enforceable laws and inspections are urgently needed to ensure that facilities profiting from wildlife meet genuine welfare standards. This petition urges the Ministry of Creative Economy to end elephant rides and direct-contact shows, ban the use of sharp hooks and prolonged chaining, require transparent, independent welfare audits, and revoke support or licensing for any operation that allegedly abuses elephants under the guise of tourism.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Minister Harsya,
We respectfully urge your office to take decisive action in response to reports of severe cruelty toward elephants at tourism facilities in Bali. Undercover footage and whistleblower testimony reportedly show elephants at operations such as Bakas Adventure Elephant Safari and Rafting, Mason Elephant Park & Lodge, and the Bali Zoo being beaten with hooks, deprived of food as punishment, chained for long periods, and kept in cramped, barren enclosures when not working. One former contractor has allegedly described handlers striking elephants “hard” and resorting to sharp, bleeding hooks when animals did not comply.
These accounts suggest a troubling gap between public marketing and on-the-ground reality. Facilities that present themselves as “rescues” or “sanctuaries” reportedly still force elephants to carry tourists, perform unnatural behaviors, and submit to training methods based on fear. In nature, elephants roam long distances, raise families, and rely on complex social bonds. Chaining them, isolating them, and threatening them with painful instruments for entertainment not only causes apparent suffering but also undermines Indonesia’s growing reputation for ethical and sustainable tourism.
We therefore ask that you champion clear reforms for elephant-based tourism across Indonesia. Specifically, we urge you to end elephant rides and direct-contact performances; prohibit the use of sharp bullhooks, nail-studded sticks, and prolonged chaining; require regular, independent welfare inspections with publicly available reports; and withdraw promotional support or permits from any facility found to be mistreating elephants. With firm standards and enforcement, Indonesia can lead the region by supporting only truly humane experiences that honor, rather than exploit, these remarkable animals.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Yavuz Solgun
