The fate of three elephants from the Johannesburg Zoo is set to be tested in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria next month, in what activists describe as a landmark legal challenge for animal welfare in South Africa.

The application, brought by Animal Law Reform South Africa, the EMS Foundation and Chief Stephen Fritz, senior chief of the Khoi community, seeks the relocation of Lammie, Ramadiba, and Mopane to a rehabilitation sanctuary in Limpopo.

Adding weight to the application is the recent history of Duma, formerly known as Charlie, who spent more than four decades in captivity at the Pretoria Zoo before being relocated to a more natural environment in 2024.

Duma’s successful transition has become a powerful example cited by activists and experts, who argue that rehabilitation – even after long-term captivity – is both possible and necessary.

At the heart of the case is whether the conditions in which the elephants are kept meet constitutional and legal obligations relating to animal welfare.

The applicants argue that they do not.

“As a result of the unnatural conditions in which they are being kept, the elephants are displaying signs of severe psychological distress, frustration, and boredom,” said Michele Pickover, director of the EMS Foundation.

“They display apathy, listlessness, as well as disturbing behaviours such as swaying from side to side, and playing with their food, as there is nothing else to do.”

According to court papers, elephants are highly sentient beings that typically live in complex social groups and can walk up to 40km a day in the wild.

In contrast, the three elephants are confined to an enclosure described as only marginally larger than a soccer field, with limited stimulation.

Legal experts involved in the case say the court will, for the first time, be asked to determine whether such conditions are compatible with South Africa’s legal framework, which increasingly recognises the sentience of animals.

Fritz has further argued that the continued captivity of the elephants is inconsistent with Khoi cultural values, which emphasise respect for the interconnectedness between humans and animals.

The applicants are asking the court to order that the elephants be placed under the care of a team of local and international experts, who would oversee their gradual reintegration into a more natural environment.

The case is set down for hearing from May 19–21 and is expected to draw significant public and legal interest, with potential implications for the future of captive wildlife management in South Africa.

Duma’s release in 2024 marked the end of a long campaign by animal welfare groups to return him to a more natural environment.

He was relocated to the Shambala Private Game Reserve near Vaalwater, where he began a gradual rehabilitation process under expert supervision.

Within days, he started displaying natural behaviours such as mud wallowing, foraging, exploring, and even communicating with other elephants over long distances.

Two years later, Duma is reported to be thriving in a protected area within the reserve, regaining strength and adapting to life in the wild after decades of confinement. His journey has become a powerful symbol of recovery and has strengthened arguments that long-captive elephants can successfully be rehabilitated and reintegrated into more natural environments.

– Read more about Duma in Limpopo: https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/11/20/duma-former-circus-and-zoo-elephant-is-adapting-to-the-wild/

Comments have been requested from the Department of Parks at the Johannesburg Zoo and the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.

– Click here to watch a video of the three elephants in the Johannesburg Zoo:

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