Two whole days of publicity on the screens of the Veepee building, in la Plaine Saint-Denis, opposite the Stade de France: that's what One Voice has been offered by the company boss who has supported us for years, Jacques-Antoine Granjon. On 27 and 28 January, while the bill on the mistreatment of animals is being discussed in the National Assembly, drivers and pedestrians in la Plaine Saint-Denis will be able to see what circuses are trying to hide: the misery suffered by animals and by Dumba in particular.
Mr Granjon is once again declaring his support for One Voice through the animals that it defends (after Maya and Jon, now it's Dumba's turn). The elephant that we recently discovered and whose ordeal, living between a wagon and a makeshift tent in the snowy Gard countryside, we revealed at the beginning of January. On 5 January we submitted an official complaint.
The public kept in the dark about mistreatment
After informing the authorities, we alerted the public. As always happens when the journalists arrive, the trainers came out with their usual spiel and showed them the animal that they were exploiting (paradoxically, offering her a welcome stroll), in full view of everyone. The circus had their opportunity to put their side of the story that day. Just like Jumbo, like Baby, like the ten tigers in a wagon, like the lionesses, like ... It is very simple – they are not exceptions but the rule. In an open letter we tried to explain to the mayor of the village why we thought that he was wrong to support the trainers.
The rubbish that the circuses spout in the face of the facts
The reality of animals' lives in both travelling and permanent circuses can be grasped only when the trainers don't know they're being watched! Captivity itself is a problem, but it is made worse by the conditions that captivity means for the animals: they spend their lives confined in wagons or tents, their health is neglected and they are trained to obey.
Independent experts who present scientific evidence to expose Dumba's suffering
We sent the images taken by the journalists to One Voice's independent experts on elephants. They raised numerous points that leave no doubt that Dumba is suffering.
Once again their conclusions are irrefutable: holding up her legs is a sign of pain in her feet, as is the general way in which she stands with her feet bunched together under her body, her laboured breathing, a probable hernia ... Two of them seriously wonder if she has tuberculosis and strongly recommend that she be tested.
Fanciful interpretations or facts
How can one claim to be an elephant specialist and come out with any old rubbish in complete ignorance of the relevant law and of the animals?
The unprotected stroll was prohibited. Making an elephant sleep in an unheated wagon is prohibited. Keeping her in an enclosure of that size is prohibited. Not treating the injuries to her temples and the pain in her feet is punishable by law ...
There has been enough propagation of untruths and fanciful interpretations of the legislation! The Minister of Ecology herself spoke out publicly on Twitter scarcely more than 24 hours after our images of Dumba had been distributed. Tens of thousands of people have already signed our petition for her to be placed in a sanctuary.
While Dumba is trying to relieve the pain in her feet and suffering more and more from loneliness, our MPs and senators are discussing the future of circus animals. The bill does not go far enough. We hope that it will meet the expectations of the French people. We are extremely grateful to Jacques-Antoine Granjon for helping us to speak up for Dumba by displaying two large photos of her on the Veepee building.
