While talking to a private news channel, Sri Lanka's Honorary Consul General Yasin Joyia said that he has made a request for the elephants to the Sri Lankan High Commissioner. In the meantime, the country’s high court has previously ruled that exporting elephants abroad is prohibited.
The ambassador said that Sri Lanka will send two female elephants to Pakistan, one for the Karachi Zoo and the other for Lahore.
Joyia said that ‘Suzi,’ the Lahore Zoo's lone elephant, passed away in May 2017 and that there is now no longer an elephant present in the zoo.
He also expressed sorrow for the passing of 17-year-old ‘Noor Jehan’ in Karachi, who suffered from long-term health problems that were apparently made worse by a lack of care at the zoo.
Additionally, the Sri Lankan representative stated that the names of the elephants would be disclosed by the national government and that a declaration of their arrival would be made in the coming few days.
It should be mentioned that since Noor Jehan's story came to light, shedding light on the lack of care she received when her health was failing at the Karachi Zoo, there has been a significant outcry about the zoo's practice of enclosing animals.
The Internet has fiercely responded to her tragic demise, accusing the zoo's administrators of "criminal negligence" and their disregard for animal rights.
Animal rights advocates from Pakistan and beyond publicized Noor Jehan's tragic suffering on social media, sparking demands for the closure of the zoo.
On April 16, 2023, the federal and Sindh governments announced that they are considering permanently closing Karachi Zoo because the animals held there endure appalling living conditions.
Senator Sherry Rehman, the federal minister for climate change, urged the provincial government to close the Karachi Zoo since it is unable to care for the wild animals in light of the public uproar and engagement of international organizations.
Meanwhile, the plan to permanently close the wildlife park and relocate the wild animals and birds to safer locations has the approval of Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who is also the Chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).