W

hile the conflict between the Free Aceh Movement and the Indonesian government may have ended, clashes between wild animals and people in Aceh shows no sign of dying down.

Wild elephants have been attacking human settlements in nearly all of the province’s 23 regencies each year.

“It’s because people have been free to reclaim land for agriculture in areas once plagued by armed skirmishes,” said Afan Absori, an Aceh BKSDA official.

Land reclamation and illegal logging have exacerbated tension between wild elephants and humans, as the habitat of the large mammal is continuously being reduced by human activity. “The most severe conflict is between man and elephants,” stressed Afan.

Locals have been reclaiming land rights on the paths these creatures are used to tread.

“When elephants travel on their usual paths, they now stumble upon settlements and new plantations with sweet vegetation. They will automatically devour all the plants the locals grow,” indicated Afan.

As a result, the number of Sumatran elephants in Aceh is declining. Based on data from the Aceh provincial administration, there were between 600 and 700 elephants in the region’s jungles in 1996. According to data gathered in human/elephant conflict areas and on the capture of elephants, their number dwindled to 350-450 in 2007.

Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf said the figures were a cause for concern as the elephant population in Aceh had dropped by almost 40 percent over the past 10 years (1996-2006). Between 2007 and 2008 (until September 2008), at least 39 wild elephants were caught or killed in conflict, which is equivalent to 10 percent of the elephant population.