斯里兰卡政府在“病象”照片走红后,下令彻查

斯里兰卡政府在“病象”照片走红后,下令彻查

Sri Lankan officials have ordered an investigation into the care of a 70-year-old “ailing” elephant used for a Buddhist celebration in Sri Lanka following the animal’s collapse.

斯里兰卡官员下令对一头70岁的“患病”大象的照料情况进行调查。这头大象死前曾被用于斯里兰卡的佛教庆祝活动。

It comes after festival organizers were forced to pull the elephant from work earlier this week, according to Agence France-Presse, following international protests on social media and a petition that has already garnered more than 35,000 signatures.

据法新社报道，本周早些时候，国际社会在社交媒体上举行了抗议活动，一份请愿书已经获得了逾3.5万个签名。之后，电影节组织者被迫将这头大象带下了工作岗位。

"I have been informed that the elephant collapsed yesterday. Considering what has transpired, I have ordered officials to initiate an inquiry and ascertain how and why an elephant in such poor health was used in the (pageant) and to take necessary action against those responsible,” tourism and wildlife minister John Amaratunga reportedly said in a statement. IFLScience sent an email to Amaratunga but had not received a response at the time of publication.

“我听说大象昨天倒下了。”据报道，旅游和野生动物部长约翰·阿马拉通加在一份声明中说:“考虑到所发生的一切，我已下令展开调查，查明一头健康状况如此糟糕的大象是如何以及为何被用于选美比赛，并对相关责任人采取必要的行动。”IFLScience向Amaratunga发送了一封电子邮件，但在发表时没有收到回复。

Tikiri is one of 60 elephants participating in the Buddhist Perahera Festival this year at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It’s not the first time the temple has come under fire for its care of elephants. A 2012 BBC report found that festival organizers resorted to restraining unruly and sometimes violent elephant participants in chains. However, in Buddhist and Hindu cultures, elephants are revered and have been celebrated in religious ceremonies for centuries.

Tikiri是今年在斯里兰卡Kandy的圣牙舍利寺参加佛教Perahera节的60头大象之一。这已经不是这座寺庙第一次因虐待大象而受到批评了。英国广播公司2012年的一篇报道发现，节日组织者采取措施限制不守规矩、有时甚至是暴力的大象参与者。然而，在佛教和印度教文化中，大象受到尊敬，几个世纪以来，大象一直在宗教仪式中参与庆祝活动。

“Tikiri joins in the parade early every evening until late at night every night for 10 consecutive nights, amidst the noise, the fireworks, and smoke,” wrote Save Elephant Foundation in a Facebook post. “She walks many kilometers every night so that people will feel blessed during the ceremony. No one sees her bony body or her weakened condition, because of her costume.

拯救大象基金会在脸书上的一篇帖子中写道:“Tikiri每天晚上都早早地加入游行队伍，直到深夜，连续10个晚上，在嘈杂、烟火和烟雾中。”“她每天晚上都要走很多公里，这样人们在仪式上就会感到幸福。因为她的服装，没有人看到她骨瘦如柴的身体。

“No one sees the tears in her eyes, injured by the bright lights that decorate her mask, no one sees her difficulty to step as her legs are short shackled while she walks,” said the foundation.

该基金会表示:“没有人看到她眼中的泪水，没有人看到她被装饰面具的强光伤害，也没有人看到她走路时因为腿短而无法迈步。”

It is not immediately apparent exactly what is wrong with the elephant. Some commenters are quick to point out that the animal may in fact be frail from age or otherwise suffering from an illness – Sri Lankan elephants have a lifespan of between 55 and 70 years old. Regardless of her health status, some contend that an elephant of her age should not be working at all.

目前还不清楚大象到底出了什么问题。一些评论者很快指出，这种动物可能由于年老或者其他疾病而虚弱——斯里兰卡大象的寿命在55到70岁之间。不管她的健康状况如何，有些人认为她这么大的大象根本不应该工作。