Anger as Sri Lanka court returns elephants to alleged traffickers

Court returns 13 elephants in state custody to alleged traffickers who captured them or people who bought from them.

Colombo, Sri Lanka – In a controversial order being widely slammed by conservationists, a Sri Lankan court has upheld an earlier decision to allow the return of 14 elephants in government custody to alleged traffickers who captured them or people accused of buying the animals from them.

Thursday’s decision by Additional Magistrate S Prabakaran was “absolutely arbitrary and the rule of law has been completely ignored”, Aruna Medagoda, the lawyer for the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society, told Al Jazeera.

“The court did not give parties the right to be heard which, contravenes the law and jurisprudence,” Medagoda said.