Amid beating drums and the shrill screech of bagpipes, the bear is dragged onto the center of the arena. The crowd, gathered for the dangal or a wrestling match, cheers loudly as the bear is tied with a long rope to a peg. Their cheering reaches a frenzied pitch as ferocious bull terriers are loosened upon the bear. The toothless and clawless bear tries to defend itself from the leaping and attacking dogs. If it's lucky it will defeat them in the three-minute bout and come out with a ripped nose and mouth and other bloody scratches. Until a few years ago, these brutal fights were not an uncommon sight throughout Punjab and Sindh. They were staged during public Eid celebrations or other festivals in the rural strongholds of local landlords and politicians. But all this changed in 1993, when word of this barbaric sport reached international conservationists and animal rights organisations like WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals) and WWF (World-Wide Fund for Nature), who started an anti-bear-baiting campaign in Pakistan. As a result, an explicit and hard-hitting report and video film was produced, which made international headlines. The resulting condemnation forced the Pakistani government to reinforce the strict ban on bear-baiting events, which had originally been introduced to the sub-continent by the British. Consequently, public dangals became a thing of the past, though it is claimed that private matches are still organised by influential landlords. The whole process of identifying the fighting bear owners or qalandars and agricultural landlords involved in bear-baiting and in the ensuing campaign to end the sport, has taken time, effort and energy by a team of staff at the WWF and WSPA. One of the people in the forefront of this campaign was Inayatullah Chaudhry, a wildlife expert at the WWF-Pakistan from 1992 to 1994, who helped in collecting and disseminating information for the film and report. Inayatullah Chaudry was no stranger to Pakistan's wildlife problems, as before WWF he had been working for the government's Forest Department since 1951. Inayatullah was regarded as a conservationist, since he had worked as Chief Conservator of Forests in the Punjab Government, besides working as a wildlife game warden. His son Khalid explained, ‘In his forty years of experience in the wild, he had witnessed the end of wildlife in Pakistan.’ So when WSPA and WWF started the bear-baiting project, Inayatullah Chaudhry, with all his practical background, was the natural choice to lead the project.
A father’s legacy to his son. The late Chaudhry Inayatullah (top) and his son Khalid (down)

Amid beating drums and the shrill screech of bagpipes, the bear is dragged onto the center of the arena. The crowd, gathered for the dangal or a wrestling match, cheers loudly as the bear is tied with a long rope to a peg. Their cheering reaches a frenzied pitch as ferocious bull terriers are loosened upon the bear. The toothless and clawless bear tries to defend itself from the leaping and attacking dogs. If it's lucky it will defeat them in the three-minute bout and come out with a ripped nose and mouth and other bloody scratches.

Until a few years ago, these brutal fights were not an uncommon sight throughout Punjab and Sindh. They were staged during public Eid celebrations or other festivals in the rural strongholds of local landlords and politicians. But all this changed in 1993, when word of this barbaric sport reached international conservationists and animal rights organisations like WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals) and WWF (World-Wide Fund for Nature), who started an anti-bear-baiting campaign in Pakistan. As a result, an explicit and hard-hitting report and video film was produced, which made international headlines. The resulting condemnation forced the Pakistani government to reinforce the strict ban on bear-baiting events, which had originally been introduced to the sub-continent by the British. Consequently, public dangals became a thing of the past, though it is claimed that private matches are still organised by influential landlords.

The whole process of identifying the fighting bear owners or qalandars and agricultural landlords involved in bear-baiting and in the ensuing campaign to end the sport, has taken time, effort and energy by a team of staff at the WWF and WSPA. One of the people in the forefront of this campaign was Inayatullah Chaudhry, a wildlife expert at the WWF-Pakistan from 1992 to 1994, who helped in collecting and disseminating information for the film and report. Inayatullah Chaudry was no stranger to Pakistan's wildlife problems, as before WWF he had been working for the government's Forest Department since 1951. Inayatullah was regarded as a conservationist, since he had worked as Chief Conservator of Forests in the Punjab Government, besides working as a wildlife game warden. His son Khalid explained, ‘In his forty years of experience in the wild, he had witnessed the end of wildlife in Pakistan.’ So when WSPA and WWF started the bear-baiting project, Inayatullah Chaudhry, with all his practical background, was the natural choice to lead the project.

Pakistan is host to two distinct species of bears, all of which are cause for concern to conservation organisations because of their dwindling numbers in the wild. In the mountains are found the Himalayan Black Bears with their distinctive white V-shaped marking on the neck. These are the most commonly captured bears, partly because of their relatively large spread over the region. The more rare Himalayan Brown Bears which are brownish in colour and larger than the Asiatic black bear, resemble the grizzlies of North America. Rarer still, are the sub-species Balochistan Black Bears, confined to one district of the province where numbers are unknown, but may be as few as 20 in the wild. The threats to these animals are manifold: habitat loss and capture for baiting are serious threats to their survival.

In 1994, soon after the WSPA video and report were produced, Inayatullah left the WWF as a staff member, carrying with him the desire to address the bear-baiting issue. He contacted his old friends and colleagues from the Forest department who, like him, had retired from government service and were looking for something to do in their spare time. Dr. Mohammad Ashraf, Inayatullah’s close friend and colleague recalls that time: “We were a group of four close friends, who had joined the forest department together in the fifties. When we retired, we got together and thought that we should do something constructive with our time, something that would be of national service.” The friends toyed around with several ideas. ‘Inayatullah Chaudhry was the only man amongst us who had also served in the Wildlife Department,’ says Dr. Ashraf. “He had a soft corner for animals and birds, so he suggested that we do something towards protecting our wildlife. As a result we formed Habitat Integrated, a registered conservation NGO.” But the friends were undecided about the exact nature and purpose of the conservation work. “Again there were lots of suggestions, one of which was that we look after caged birds or zoo animals – there was no mention of bears,” remembers Dr. Ashraf.

It was Inayatullah Chaudhry, with his past experience with bears, who suggested that Habitat should concentrate its energy in that direction. “Inayatullah always had this great desire to do social work, he could not stand injustice and cruelty. He was very upset over the whole issue of dog fights and thought that Habitat should focus towards saving the bears in the wild, by helping to remove this man-made threat,” says Dr. Ashraf. “His suggestion was hotly debated by all of us and we did not really encourage him a lot, as we did not realise the global importance of this issue. Since most of us were also busy elsewhere, we asked Inayatullah if he was up to the task. So despite the fact that I was involved with him in planning stages, I have to say that 90 per cent of the work was done by him.” The fact that Inayatullah was an ex-government official proved to be a major advantage in his work. This meant that he had contacts in the form of ex-colleagues, friends and students in the wildlife and forest department, who formed a network of people willing to help him. “If he did not have their cooperation, then maybe he would not have been so successful,” surmises Dr. Ashraf.

In the years he had spent working on bear-baiting, Inayatullah had come to realise that the issue is not simple. He understood that enforcement of a few stringent laws is not in itself a solution to the problem. Although law enforcement reduces the incidence of bear-baiting, it also forces the game to go underground. To solve the problem, it was necessary to identify the people involved and assess their situation. Inayatullah’s research has shown that there is a chain of people who depend upon bear-baiting, including wild life dealers, qalandars and trainers, and those who encourage the game as hosts to baiting events. They are likely to be the powerful feudal landlords for whom baiting events bring social prestige and help win votes from their rural constituencies. Inayatullah’s research presented a whole new side to this ancient problem, which has its roots deep in feudal society. By way of an acknowledgement, these findings have become part of the discourse on bear conservation in the country. On the ground, his awareness campaign has also addressed the landlords. “He first developed contacts with the zamindars,” says Dr. Ashraf. “Though the zamindars agreed that it’s a cruel sport, they insisted that it is a sign of power and prestige.” Inayatullah tried convincing them otherwise. Eventually, it was through some of these zamindars that Inayatullah got to know the bear-baiters in Sindh and Punjab. According to Ashraf, “the gypsies refused to cooperate initially, but Inayatullah soon developed a good understanding with them. They had great faith in him and would listen to him.”

Inayatullah was faced with an uphill task, for bear-baiting has been the traditional livelihood for generations of qalandars, which they were naturally unwilling to relinquish. Also, the ban on bear-baiting meant that the already impoverished qalandars were facing further poverty and hardships. So Inayatullah had to come up with alternatives that would help wean the qalandars away from this means of livelihood. As a start, Habitat set up a small training centre for qalandar women, where they were taught sewing and other vocational skills like fruit preservation and knitting. The NGO also made plans to teach the younger qalandars skills like basketry, carpentry and providing them with donkey or bullock carts to earn their living as transporters of minor goods.

However, after a couple of years, some of these efforts failed because the qalandar families were simply not interested in either the vocations or the way of life they entailed. They believed that their fate was to roam the earth under the open skies as gypsies. They used to say to Inayatullah, “These roofs that you have placed above our heads may fall down on us one day.” However, other projects that provided basic services like family planning and schooling have been successful. “A lot has come out of this campaign,” says Khalid Inayatullah of Habitat. “Economic pressures have made at least the women realise the importance and need of family planning. We have also seen that despite their limited opportunities, the girls want to get an education.”

Habitat’s experience had proved that to stop bear-baiting and help the qalandars, it is necessary to provide them with alternative vocations, which conform to their unconventional way of life. Conservationists interested in the issue have suggested that qalandars may be helped to continue practicing their ancient trade as street entertainers, only instead of bears they should use domesticated animals like dogs or goats. They could also be taught other forms of entertainment, which do not involve animals, like folk songs, street theatre and mime.

One of Habitat's major contributions has been to help convince the government to take bear-baiting seriously. In 1997, the government agreed to provide land for a bear sanctuary funded by WSPA. The sanctuary has been constructed in Kund Park, located on the junction of the River Kabul and River Indus at Attock. It will become operational by the end of 2000 and will be managed by the NWFP government's Wildlife Department. The sanctuary will provide a safe haven to bears confiscated from qalandars and the bear dealers as well as raising public awareness about animal rights. It will support the legal ban on bear baiting by providing a place for confiscated bears who are unable to survive in the wild, to spend the rest of their lives in safety.

In April 1999, Inayatullah Chaudhry passed away, leaving Habitat’s small management reduced to just a few people. As the main force behind Habitat’s bear-baiting project, Inayatullah’s work floundered for a while, receding from conservation seminars and other professional interactions. In a matter of six months, the reins of the bear-baiting work have been quietly taken over by his son Khalid. Introspective and most at home with the subject of his field investigations, Khalid has tried to keep the spirit of Inayatullah’s work alive. Trained as a sociologist, Khalid is Inayatullah’s only son. When Inayatullah’s health took a turn for the worse in 1997, Khalid was called back from his small business enterprise in Faisalabad to work with Habitat.

As a sociologist, Khalid is interested in the qalandars, the ‘human angle,’ as he put it, to the bear-baiting problem. Over the years, he has had close interaction with the qalandars and with the organisations involved in the bear-baiting ban, WSPA and WWF. But ironically Khalid is one of the most vocal critics of the bear-baiting ban, saying that this ban despite being “Habitat’s greatest success is also our greatest failure.” According to him, the ban has hit the qalandars hard and has forced the game to go underground. Though Habitat managed to convince some landlords to stop hosting the fights, the majority has still not refrained from animal baiting. Recent research has revealed that they have switched from bears to boars, pitting dogs against boars in fights that last till the animals’ deaths.

As far as the bears are concerned, Khalid alleges that since the qalandars are no longer able to eke out their meager living through the bear fights, their captive bears are starving, while the qalandars’ own survival is at stake. “These indigenous people are angry and say that this profession is their inheritance – a part of an ancestral way of life, why should they abandon it now? They also question the fact that while bear-baiting has been banned, other forms of animal entertainment like monkeys and dogs still continues.” Khalid points out that the qalandars are now forced towards other marginal professions, leading to rising crime and prostitution in their community. He says that since these neglected people do not have national identity cards, they are not even considered Pakistani citizens, with political, economic or social rights. “As they belong to no political constituency, no one is willing to listen to them.”

After his father’s death, it was this deep sympathy with the qalandars that made Khalid re-engage in the ongoing discourse on bear conservation in the country. In May 2000, Ashraf and Khalid attended a conference where the viability of the WSPA funded bear sanctuary and the future of bear-baiting was discussed. “We were reluctant participants,” says Khalid, “because we have a few objections to the sanctuary. WSPA has suggested that bears admitted to the sanctuary will be neutered. This means that they cannot breed, so that they are as good as dead.” Attending that conference made Khalid realise that there are other people and organisations working for bear conservation, but there are very few with Habitat’s experience with baiting bears. “I realised that despite the fact that we are a small show,” says Khalid, “Habitat has to play a major role in the bear-baiting issue, while also addressing the qalandar problem.”

Stimulated by participating in this national discussion on bear-baiting and conservation, Habitat has decided to re-commit itself to its area of expertise and build upon its existing work. Khalid has discussed a few issues that need action on the baiting side of the problem. He wants to investigate a recent rumour that he has heard through the qalandars about a killer epidemic amongst their bears. Habitat wants to assess if these rumours are true and to research the nature of the disease, to see whether it is rabies and if it is affecting the fighting dogs too. Khalid fears that if this epidemic is a reality and causes death in captive bears, it could result in a sudden resurgence of the capture of wild bears’ cubs.

As the ban on baiting has forced qalandars to disperse or go into hiding, Habitat intends to find out how they are surviving, where they are and what they are doing. If other ways to earn a living tested by his father were not those preferred by the qalandars, then Khalid intends to find out about the choices that qalandars make left to themselves. And if practical, then Khalid feels that disseminating this information as ‘best practices’ for alternative livelihoods to other qalandars may prove valuable.

This planned research should also reveal the interdependence of landlords, qalandars and dog owners, and what happens when this traditional relationship is disrupted and made illegal. To test out the ongoing debate about baiting as filling in a gap for public entertainment, it has been suggested that Habitat get in touch with Hirak Development Organisation, an NGO that uses street theatre for social mobilisation. They will plan out a series of street theatre performances on bear-baiting, addressing issues like the addictive pleasure of the sport, the cruelty to animals and the close relationship between qalandars and their bears. Khalid believes that some of the zamindars that stopped hosting fights due to his father’s work will now be ready to host traditional theatre that sheds a different light on bear-baiting as a cruel and threatening sport.

The plans for continuing the work of his father are still in the initial stage with his son. Khalid is hopeful that they might be able to get the much needed funding for the project from GEF/SGP. ‘We can’t change the world,’ he says talking about his work and that of his father’s. ‘We are just drops in the ocean. Though we have been labeled as being isolated, in reality it is our own limitations like lack of funding which have isolated us.’ But Khalid is quite proud of Habitat’s frugality, for he believes that this has only helped them in coming up with new and innovative ideas, while working within real restrictions. ‘Though we might not be the only ones working to save the endangered bears in Pakistan, our work with qalandars is unique,’ he concludes with a grin. In Habitat’s work lies the wisdom in understanding how to end the cruel sport of bear-baiting. By recognizing the ties of necessity that bind the human to the bear, there is insight into how to end this practice and remove a significant threat to the survival of bears in the wild.

– Written by Faiza Hasan and Mehjabeen Abidi Habib