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Irish Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Harrowing moment tourist is mauled while trying to take selfie with tiger
This is the harrowing moment a tourist is mauled by a tiger while trying to take a selfie with the animal. Footage circulating online shows the holidaymaker, believed to be from India, walking alongside the tiger while holding its chain at Tiger Kingdom in Phuket, Thailand. He can then be seen crouching beside the animal to pose for a photo. But as the trainer uses a stick to instruct the big cat to sit down and the tourist puts his arm around the tiger's back, the animal suddenly attacks the man, who is heard screaming. Shocked onlookers panic as the incident unfolds and the video ends abruptly as staff intervene to save the man. According to reports, the tourist suffered minor injuries in the attack. The incident has raised serious concerns about wildlife safety and tourism ethics in places like Tiger Kingdom Phuket, which is described on Tripadvisor as "a once in a lifetime experience where you can meet, play, and have your photo taken with tigers." Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand, a rescue centre for elephants, monkeys and jungle cats, called for an end on big cat exploitation, saying: "This cruelty must end. For their safety - and ours." A person wrote on X, "Cats generally do not like being petted on the lower (back) body especially near butts. This man was petting the tiger continuously near above mentioned body area which must have frustrated the tiger. Final straw was when the man cupped it for a photo." Another said, "Been there. It's Tiger Kingdom in Phuket. They sedate the tigers just enough that they don't have the will to attack. Always feared this could happen." Someone else added: "Hopefully this forces the authorities to crack down on these places. It's plain cruelty." One more said: "What is meant to be wild should stay in the wild." Animal welfare organisations advise against visiting places such as tiger entertainment venues, which are common in South-East Asia, particularly Thailand, due to concerns about conservation and animal cruelty. The Environmental Investigation Agency said in a post on its website: "The simplest advice we can give you is if an establishment offers direct tourist interactions with captive animals (selfies, hugging, feeding) and/or promotes tigers engaging in unnatural behaviours (e.g. tricks or performances) then do not visit. "By not spending your money in tiger entertainment venues you will reduce the profitability of the tiger entertainment industry and help end these cruel practices for good." It also said cubs are often separated from their mothers within weeks of being born so that they can be hand-raised and bottle-fed by tourist. It added: "This is extremely stressful for both cubs and mothers, particularly if you consider that, in the wild, they would stay together for a couple of years. Furthermore, tigers are often confined to small, barren enclosures or cages resulting in significant physical and psychological distress, especially considering that tigers in the wild can roam many kilometres in a single night! Frequent handling and visitor contact in loud environments causes the animals further stress and, in order to perform for tourists, tigers are subjected to cruel training regimes." In December 2024, a zookeeper who had worked with tigers for years was mauled to death when he stepped inside the big cat enclosure at the Pitești Zoo. And in September 2024, a tiger mauled an animal handler at Dreamworld, in Queensland's Gold Coast, with the victim suffering "some serious lacerations and puncture wounds".
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Harrowing moment tourist is mauled while trying to take selfie with tiger
A tourist who was attempting to pose for a photo with a tiger in Thailand was attacked by the animal and suffered minor injuries - footage of the incident has gone viral This is the harrowing moment a tourist is mauled by a tiger while trying to take a selfie with the animal. Footage circulating online shows the holidaymaker, believed to be from India, walking alongside the tiger while holding its chain at Tiger Kingdom in Phuket, Thailand. He can then be seen crouching beside the animal to pose for a photo. But as the trainer uses a stick to instruct the big cat to sit down and the tourist puts his arm around the tiger's back, the animal suddenly attacks the man, who is heard screaming. Shocked onlookers panic as the incident unfolds and the video ends abruptly as staff intervene to save the man. According to reports, the tourist suffered minor injuries in the attack. The incident has raised serious concerns about wildlife safety and tourism ethics in places like Tiger Kingdom Phuket, which is described on Tripadvisor as "a once in a lifetime experience where you can meet, play, and have your photo taken with tigers." Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand, a rescue centre for elephants, monkeys and jungle cats, called for an end on big cat exploitation, saying: "This cruelty must end. For their safety - and ours." A person wrote on X, "Cats generally do not like being petted on the lower (back) body especially near butts. This man was petting the tiger continuously near above mentioned body area which must have frustrated the tiger. Final straw was when the man cupped it for a photo." Another said, "Been there. It's Tiger Kingdom in Phuket. They sedate the tigers just enough that they don't have the will to attack. Always feared this could happen." Someone else added: "Hopefully this forces the authorities to crack down on these places. It's plain cruelty." One more said: "What is meant to be wild should stay in the wild." Animal welfare organisations advise against visiting places such as tiger entertainment venues, which are common in South-East Asia, particularly Thailand, due to concerns about conservation and animal cruelty. The Environmental Investigation Agency said in a post on its website: "The simplest advice we can give you is if an establishment offers direct tourist interactions with captive animals (selfies, hugging, feeding) and/or promotes tigers engaging in unnatural behaviours (e.g. tricks or performances) then do not visit. "By not spending your money in tiger entertainment venues you will reduce the profitability of the tiger entertainment industry and help end these cruel practices for good." It also said cubs are often separated from their mothers within weeks of being born so that they can be hand-raised and bottle-fed by tourist. It added: "This is extremely stressful for both cubs and mothers, particularly if you consider that, in the wild, they would stay together for a couple of years. Furthermore, tigers are often confined to small, barren enclosures or cages resulting in significant physical and psychological distress, especially considering that tigers in the wild can roam many kilometres in a single night! Frequent handling and visitor contact in loud environments causes the animals further stress and, in order to perform for tourists, tigers are subjected to cruel training regimes." In December 2024, a zookeeper who had worked with tigers for years was mauled to death when he stepped inside the big cat enclosure at the Pitești Zoo. And in September 2024, a tiger mauled an animal handler at Dreamworld, in Queensland's Gold Coast, with the victim suffering "some serious lacerations and puncture wounds".
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Colombia takes regional lead in Indigenous self-government
Steven GrattanAssociated Press Colombia this week took a leading position in Latin America for Indigenous rights and forest protection by formalizing Indigenous local governments across swaths of the Amazon, raising hopes that other countries in the region will follow its lead. Activists say Monday's decision gives Indigenous communities not just land titles, but actual self-governing authority — complete with public budgets and administrative power. The process, underway since 2018, now has a legal framework enabling Indigenous councils to function as official local governments. 'This puts Colombia in the lead when it comes to recognizing Indigenous rights — not just to land, but to identity, autonomy, and decision-making over their own development,' said Mayu Velasco Anderson, head of the Peru and Colombia program at nongovernmental organization Rainforest Foundation Norway. Patricia Suárez, Indigenous leader and adviser to the National Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the Colombian Amazon, called the presidential decree 'historic.' 'We have been seeking recognition of our autonomy and self-determination as Indigenous Territorial Entities for over 30 years,' Suárez said. 'This progress is a milestone in the consolidation of the rights of Indigenous Peoples as autonomous governments.' In contrast, other Latin American countries typically only grant land titles. Brazil, for example, has extensive Indigenous territories that frequently intersect multiple municipalities, forcing communities to navigate conflicting public systems and undermining their self-governance. 'In Brazil, even demarcated and regularized Indigenous lands fall under the administrative boundaries of states and municipalities, and communities depend on these governments to access public policies,' said Inés Luna Maira, head of institutional partnerships at Rainforest Foundation Norway. 'They have to deal with a patchwork of public systems and elected officials that don't reflect Indigenous governance.' Suriname, home to some of the most intact forests and Indigenous and Maroon communities, lags furthest behind other nations in the region on this issue. Colombia's new framework gives Indigenous groups direct authority over their territories, streamlining governance and boosting protections for forests that are critical to combating climate change. Julia Urrunaga, director of Peru Programs at the nonprofit Environmental Investigation Agency welcomed the move and expressed hope that her country would follow Colombia's example. 'We celebrate this victory for the Indigenous Peoples of Colombia,' she said. 'Sadly, the Peruvian government has been walking in the opposite direction — passing laws that affect Indigenous rights without prior consultation, which goes against Peru's own constitution.' Urrunaga pointed to what environmental activists have dubbed Peru´s 'Anti-Forest Law," which activists say legalizes illegal deforestation in Indigenous territories, and to the government's promotion of palm oil plantations over Amazonian forest. 'Peru's Indigenous Peoples are still struggling to receive recognition of their ancestral territories,' she said. 'And even when they obtain it, they don't get the support they deserve from the state to protect their land and forests for the benefit of all humanity.'
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Colombia takes regional lead in Indigenous self-government, raising hopes for Amazon protection
Colombia this week took a leading position in Latin America for Indigenous rights and forest protection by formalizing Indigenous local governments across swaths of the Amazon, raising hopes that other countries in the region will follow its lead. Activists say Monday's decision gives Indigenous communities not just land titles, but actual self-governing authority — complete with public budgets and administrative power. The process, underway since 2018, now has a legal framework enabling Indigenous councils to function as official local governments. 'This puts Colombia in the lead when it comes to recognizing Indigenous rights — not just to land, but to identity, autonomy, and decision-making over their own development,' said Mayu Velasco Anderson, head of the Peru and Colombia program at nongovernmental organization Rainforest Foundation Norway. Patricia Suárez, Indigenous leader and adviser to the National Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the Colombian Amazon, called the presidential decree 'historic.' 'We have been seeking recognition of our autonomy and self-determination as Indigenous Territorial Entities for over 30 years,' Suárez said. 'This progress is a milestone in the consolidation of the rights of Indigenous Peoples as autonomous governments.' In contrast, other Latin American countries typically only grant land titles. Brazil, for example, has extensive Indigenous territories that frequently intersect multiple municipalities, forcing communities to navigate conflicting public systems and undermining their self-governance. 'In Brazil, even demarcated and regularized Indigenous lands fall under the administrative boundaries of states and municipalities, and communities depend on these governments to access public policies,' said Inés Luna Maira, head of institutional partnerships at Rainforest Foundation Norway. 'They have to deal with a patchwork of public systems and elected officials that don't reflect Indigenous governance.' Suriname, home to some of the most intact forests and Indigenous and Maroon communities, lags furthest behind other nations in the region on this issue. Colombia's new framework gives Indigenous groups direct authority over their territories, streamlining governance and boosting protections for forests that are critical to combating climate change. Julia Urrunaga, director of Peru Programs at the nonprofit Environmental Investigation Agency welcomed the move and expressed hope that her country would follow Colombia's example. 'We celebrate this victory for the Indigenous Peoples of Colombia,' she said. 'Sadly, the Peruvian government has been walking in the opposite direction — passing laws that affect Indigenous rights without prior consultation, which goes against Peru's own constitution.' Urrunaga pointed to what environmental activists have dubbed Peru´s 'Anti-Forest Law," which activists say legalizes illegal deforestation in Indigenous territories, and to the government's promotion of palm oil plantations over Amazonian forest. 'Peru's Indigenous Peoples are still struggling to receive recognition of their ancestral territories,' she said. 'And even when they obtain it, they don't get the support they deserve from the state to protect their land and forests for the benefit of all humanity.' ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
South China Morning Post
15-02-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
Asia must act to avoid eating pangolins out of existence
Published: 9:30am, 15 Feb 2025 Earlier this year, scientists at the Zoological Survey of India announced the discovery of a new pangolin species, the Indo-Burmese pangolin. Found in mountainous and subtropical habitats across Nepal, India and Myanmar, the discovery adds to growing knowledge of these elusive mammals. However, this breakthrough in biodiversity research also raises concerns about increased risks. The UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency has warned that legal loopholes could allow traffickers to take advantage of regulatory grey areas surrounding newly identified species, making them even more vulnerable to poaching and illegal trade . Pangolins are among the world's most trafficked mammals, driven by relentless demand across Asia . The region serves as both a destination and a key transit hub for the illegal trade. Between 2015 and 2021, authorities seized more than 330 tonnes of pangolins and their parts, 91 per cent of which were confiscated in mainland China, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. These numbers likely capture only a fraction of the actual trade as many cases go undetected or unreported. The history of pangolin exploitation is deeply rooted in Asian cultural practices and traditional medicine . For centuries, their scales – made of keratin, the same material as human fingernails – have been used in traditional remedies despite no scientific evidence supporting such claims, and their meat is considered a delicacy in some regions. However, what was once sustainable local consumption has transformed into an industrial-scale slaughter. As one of the world's largest consumers of pangolin products , China has an important role in protecting the species. However, the country's recent policy shifts reveal a contradiction. Earlier this year, China set an annual quota of one metric tonne of pangolin scales for medical use despite the global ban on the trade. This decision deepens uncertainty about the government's commitment to pangolin protection. While China has granted its three native pangolin species the highest level of national protection and removed pangolin scales from the official list of 'raw materials' for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in 2020, a significant loophole remains when pangolin scales are still included in patented medicine formulas within the country's official TCM reference books. 01:23 China removes pangolin from traditional Chinese medicine list China removes pangolin from traditional Chinese medicine list
