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Published on February 16, 2008

She also said the animal's age was falsified when she was shipped.

Anongwan has ordered the National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department to immediately investigate the case.

The elephant, named Phang Thongdee, was falsely documented as being nine years old, prompting the authorities to consider a reform of the elephant "ticketing" system.

The elephant's previous owner told officials that Phang Thongdee was actually 12 years old, not nine as stated on the ticket, and that Phang's age was probably "roughly estimated".

Anongwan was asked if the investigation would be retrospective. She replied that the incident happened under the old administration and that the aim of the investigation would be to find the flaws in the system not to hunt down a culprit.

Soraida Salwala, director of the Friends of the Asian Elephant Foundation, said that prior to the elephants being shipped, the activists had requested information about the ages of the eight and whether they were wild or born and raised on a farm. They also wanted to know which country any elephant born in Australia would belong to.

But the agencies did not reply and the elephants were "hurriedly shipped away" Soraida said.

She also said she did not believe the tickets were forged but that the registration procedure was inadequate.

Wildlife advocate Hannarong Yaowalert referred to the incident as "an identity card forgery for elephants". He said that the Australian authority's claim that the excellent care Phang had received in Australia could have contributed to its ability to become pregnant at the age of nine was an attempt to twist the facts.

Panthep Rattanakorn, dean of the faculty of veterinary medicine at Mahidol University, said that he was responsible for the quarantine and the training of the elephants prior to their transportation. He said he had no involvement in the elephant's documentation. He said that it was possible an elephant could be pregnant at the age of nine depending on its environment and health.

Janjira Pongrai

The Nation