Elephant howls in pain during cruel beating at Buddhist temple
The keeper appears to whip the elephant whose legs are tied to trees (Picture: RARE)
Shocking footage has emerged which appears to show an elephant crying out in pain and being whipped at a Buddhist temple.
The 15-year-old male elephant, who is called Myan Prince, is filmed lying helplessly on its side in a murky pool as his keeper beats him with sharp sticks.
It appears they are trying to wash his legs, which they have chained to two trees surrounding the water.
Outraged activists have posted several videos of Myan Prince in distress at the Bellanwila Temple, just south of the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo.
In one upsetting video, Myan Prince is heard wailing in pain as he flaps about the pool, and in another a keeper shouts and whips him.
The keeper has also been pictured posing on the elephant’s back to apparently taunt the activists who were protesting at his treatment.
Myan Prince was blamed by the Sri Lankan press for killing an elderly monk at the temple in February 2018.
Initial reports said he violently pushed 77-year-old Wimalarathana Thero to the ground during his breakfast feed in the morning.
But the temple denied the attack happened, saying the senior monk fell and suffered a heart attack, the Sri Lankan Sunday Observer reported at the time.
Maneesha Arachchige, an activist from Rally for Animal Rights and Environment [RARE], said she fears for the elephant’s life after visiting the temple yesterday. She told Metro.co.uk: ‘We are very concerned for the welfare of Myan Prince.
A keeper appears to pose for a photo on top of the chained elephant (Picture: RARE)
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