Indonesia Becomes First Asian Nation to Ban Elephant Rides

Indonesia's Agency for Natural Resources and Conservation confirmed in a statement that the ban on this practice, decreed in December 2025, has been in effect since Monday in all registered tourist centers and animal conservation centers. The regulation, which required the end of elephant rides and the display of this activity from January 21, 2026, had been violated last week at a private center in Bali—Indonesia's premier tourist destination—prompting the government to issue two warnings to this establishment. Indonesia has become the first nation in Asia to completely ban elephant rides, an activity that attracts thousands of international tourists each year and that animal welfare organizations are also calling to be eradicated in countries like India and Thailand. Indonesia is home to the Sumatran elephant, a subspecies of the Asian pachyderm, whose population was halved between 1985 and 2012 due to poaching for its highly prized tusks in the illegal trade, deforestation that has significantly reduced its natural habitat, and conflicts with humans. This ban, the NGO emphasized, 'puts Indonesia at the forefront of elephant welfare.' 'We now urge Nepal, Thailand, India, and other countries to follow Indonesia's example, and we ask travel agencies worldwide to stop selling packages that include elephant rides,' the text concludes. PETA's investigations have revealed that elephants are routinely chained and beaten with sharp hooks to force them to obey during tourist rides,' stated PETA Asia President Jason Baker in the written statement. Currently, there are between 2,400 and 2,800 individuals of this animal left, so it is classified as 'critically endangered' by the World Wildlife Fund. 'All too often, elephants lose out in the tourism industry.' After the Ministry of Forestry threatened to revoke its operating license, the center eliminated elephant riding starting last Sunday, when a government-designated team went to the site and verified the implementation of the ban. In response, the non-governmental organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) issued a statement celebrating this 'historic decision'.