
Kaavan

Kaavan (; born 1985) is a male Asian elephant known as the 'world's loneliest elephant' after his partner Saheli died in 2012. Kaavan was gifted by the government of Sri Lanka to Pakistan in 1985 as a result of the positive relationship between the two countries. He remained at the Islamabad Zoo until November 2020, when he was moved to a sanctuary in Cambodia in response to a campaign launched by local and international animal rights activists led by American singer Cher.
In May 2020, the Islamabad High Court ordered Kaavan to be released.
Biography.
Kaavan was born in Sri Lanka in 1985 and upon his birth, the Sri Lankan government gifted him to then-president of Pakistan Zia-ul-Haq. The elephant was kept at the Islamabad Zoo and remained as the only Asian elephant living in Pakistan. An elephant named Saheli was brought from Bangladesh in 1990 and remained as Kaavan's partner until her death in 2012.
Campaign to free Kaavan.
In 2015, Samar Khan, a local student from Islamabad, started an online petition at Change.org demanding Kaavan's release. It was signed by many people and the matter gained international prominence. The petition was reportedly sent to zoo authorities and to then-Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif.
In September 2016, a news report highlighted the dire condition in which Kaavan was living, including being bound in chains for over two decades. The zoo consequently decided to send the elephant to Cambodia. In the same month, pictures of Kaavan living alone and in chains went viral on the internet and caught the attention of popular American pop singer Cher, who initiated a campaign called #SaveKavaan on social media to relocate the pachyderm.
Another petition also circulated in 2016 and it was supported by over 200,000 people. The campaign also reported that the elephant was locked up in a small enclosure without adequate breathing space and with only a small pool of water in usual 40 °C summer temperatures.
Court case.
On 21 May 2020, the Islamabad High Court took up the case during the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan and handed down the verdict that Kaavan should be freed. It ordered wildlife officials to consult with Sri Lankan authorities to find a suitable sanctuary for Kaavan in another country within 30 days. The court also criticised the zoo officials for failing to meet the animal's needs in terms of the violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1890 and Wildlife Ordinance of 1979.
Cher thanked the Islamabad High Court and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for the verdict. She tweeted that "We have just heard from the Pakistan High Court that Kaavan is Free. This is the Greatest moment of my life".
Relocation to Cambodia.
On 17 July 2020, Free the Wild announced that the Pakistan Government had ruled that FTW had their consent to relocate Kaavan to Lek's sanctuary in Cambodia—"A place we have personally visited and vetted and are delighted for Kaavan to call home". From September to November 2020, veterinarian Amir Khalil from the animal welfare organisation Four Paws, with the support of journalist and businessman Eric Margolis, singer Cher, and Dr Frank Goeritz from the "Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research" (IZW), examined and approved Kaavan for relocation to the Cambodia Wildlife Sanctuary.
Cher arrived in Pakistan to bid farewell to Kaavan and a ceremony was also organized at Marghazar Zoo in Islamabad, which was attended by officials, activists, and members of the public. The President of Pakistan, Arif Alvi, and First Lady Sameena Alvi, along with various ministers and delegates, also bid the elephant farewell. The move was completed on 30 November 2020.
"Cher & the Loneliest Elephant".
In March 2021, Paramount+ announced the release of a documentary film, titled "Cher & the Loneliest Elephant", detailing the singer's quest, alongside animal aid groups and veterinarians, to free Kaavan from confinement and have him transferred to a wildlife sanctuary.
The film is set to premiere on 22 April 2021 on the streaming platform and 19 May on the Smithsonian Channel.