Dhaka, July 4 -- I was scheduled to travel to Bogor, Indonesia, to attend the 4th meeting of the Asian Elephant Specialist Group from May 20-22, 1992. When I went to the visa office of the Indonesian Embassy in Dhaka, the visa officer asked me about the purpose of my trip to Bogor.

After hearing my explanation, he was surprised and asked, "Are there elephants in Bangladesh?"

I replied, "Why are you so surprised?"

He said, "Your country is so small, with so many people, how can elephants survive there?"

I responded, "Your country also has a large population, yet elephants still survive there."

He said, "But our country is much bigger."

I explained, "We have been making continuous efforts to figure out how to share our country's limit...