Komputer for Alle 1998 #6/1998 CD 6 (Gul).iso/web/ffa/wwwenv~1.org/arrs/digest/news51~2.htm/text0001.txt

Text File | 1998-04-03 | 47.5 KB | 1,165 lines

=====================================================================
====
ANIMAL WATCH AUSTRALIA

IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 7th, 1997

....7 activists from AWA inspected a battery hen farm somewhere in
Victoria, Australia in the early hours on September 5th, 1997. Ten very
sick hens, many suffering from blindess and tumours were rescued. The
purpose of this investigation, was to obtain invaluable film footage as
as evidence of the extreme conditions at this particular farm. Many of
the hens had to be untangled from corrupted enclosures. Approximately
twenty corpses in various stages of decomposition were removed from
cages, so that other hens didn't have to stand in them as they rotted.
Further action is expected....

ANIMAL WATCH AUSTRALIA
http://www.envirolink.org/orgs/animal_watch/au.html
[e-mail]
=====================================================================
====
Date: Sat, 06 Sep 1997 21:56:53
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [CA] Air pollution wreaking havoc, says NAFTA
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>From The Province - Friday, September 5th, 1997

CANADIAN PRESS

TORONTO - Air pollution drifting across North America is "wreaking havoc on
human health and the environment," says a NAFTA report released yesterday.

A panel of 30 scientists from Canada, Mexico and the U.S. found the
widespread fallout from acid rain,smog, pesticides and highly toxic
chemicals such as mercury, is severe enough to demand immediate cuts in
emissions.

"Enough is already known on most fronts for us to say, unequivocally, that
significant reductions from present levels are needed now," the panel's
report concluded.

The scientists also said there is little doubt that the health of people in
all three countries that signed the North American free-trade agreement is
being harmed by air pollution.

The report calls for a three-nation strategy to combat air pollution across
the continent by establishing goals and timetables for reducing emissions.



Date: Sat, 06 Sep 1997 21:24:58
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [CA] Canadians feel taxed by Newfoundland seal hunt
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>From The Province - Friday, September 5th, 1997

Killing, subsidies, opposed by most in Angus reid poll

Candian Press

TORONTO - Half of Canadians want the East Coast seal hunt to end and most
oppose subsidizing it with tax dollars, suggests an Angus Reid poll
released yesterday.

But 41 per cent were unaware that their tax dollars support the hunt, said
Rick Smith, director of the International Fund for Animal Welfare - the
group that funded the study.

One in two people who responded at the beginning of the survey opposed a
commercial hunt. Asked again at the end of the survey, opposition grew to
55 per cent, said Smith.

"The results of this poll are very clear - that Canadians don't know very
much about the hunt, but when they find out more, they are liable to be
very angry with the current (federal) government's policy."

His group has always been vehemently opposed to the Newfoundland hunt and
has engaged celebrities to help in its fight to end it. ALmost 300,000
seals were taken in this year's commercial seal hunt, Smith said.

Angus Reid asked 2,715 Canadians their opinions on various aspects of the
hunt, including its existence, size, government subsidies and the legality
of hunting seal pups.

The survey is said to have a margin of error of plus or minus 1.9
percentage points in a national sample, larger within individual provinces.
The survey suggested almost half didn't know the government allows hunting
seals less than one year old. When informed, 85 per cent opposed the policy.

Since 1985, Ottawa has provided $1 million a year to the industry, and last
year gave at least $2 million, said Smith. In the poll, 73 per cent said
felt the seal hunt is a "waste of taxpayer's money."



Date: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 14:03:48 +0200
From: Jordi Ninerola <[e-mail]>
To: AR News <[e-mail]>
Subject: JUAN CARLOS I AND THE PRINCESS OF WALLES
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1



JORDI NI╤EROLA: The king of spain, Juan Carlos I, have very problems in UK. Yesterday when
Diana, princess of Walles, was ingrowing he didn't go to her funeral and prefer stay in Spain and
went to bullfighting. More britains call to spanish ambassy in London and protest, because hate
two things ( Diana's obviate and bullfighting)

http://www.geocities.com/hollywood/academy/2855
http://www.geocities.com/colosseum/loge/3128
[e-mail]: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 14:07:44 +0200
From: Jordi Ninerola <[e-mail]>
To: AR News <[e-mail]>
Subject: Martina Hingis and her bear
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1



The first woman tenis player in the world, Martina Hingis win in Stanford tournament a baby
bear. She decided that this bear life with she in Trⁿbbach, in Switzerland, with her two horses
(MONTANA and SORRENTO) . She likes very much animals and his ilusion is that when she
won't play tennis, she works in a horses' refuge

JORDI

http://www.geocities.com/hollywood/academy/2855
http://www.geocities.com/colosseum/loge/3128
[e-mail]: Sun, 7 Sep 1997 10:46:40 -0700 (PDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: HARLOW EFFIGY TORCHED IN MADISON (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"


URGENT NEWS ADVISORY
September 7, 1997




Militants Will Torch Effigy
Of Animal Researcher At
Madison Protest Sunday

     MADISON û Militant animal rights activists will torch the effigy of an
infamous animal researcher at the gates of the "Harlow Primate Lab" (Charter
St.) about 1:30 p.m. Sunday as part of a series of protests being held this
weekend against primate experimentation at the Univ. of Wisconsin Regional
Primate Research Center.

     Confrontations with police and arrests are likely.

     Militants from throughout the east and Midwest are attending the
demonstrations, which have included a vigil by Rick Bogle, who plans to stay
outside the Wisconsin Primate Research Center for more than a week as part
of his nationwide tour of U.S. primate centers to draw attention to the
wasted monies and deaths at the centers.

     Arrests have resulted from support protests at other centers earlier this
year, including the Univ. of Washington and Harvard. And, in protests at the
Yerkes Primate Center in Atlanta in April there were 64 arrests. A similar
demonstration at the Univ. of California, Davis Regional Primate Center in
April had 32 arrests. Police used clubs and tear gas at the Yerkes and Davis
protests to end the demonstrations.

     -30-


Date: Sun, 7 Sep 1997 14:05:40 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Plan may rescue Montserrat oriole from extinction
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>


Nature Trail, The Toronto Star, Sept. 7, 1997, by Barry Kent MacKay

Plan may rescue Montserrat oriole from extinction

A recent genetic study has demonstrated that it is a full and unique species;
now the beautiful Montserrat oriole faces oblivion.<
The same size as our native Baltimore oriole, the male Montserrat is an
elegantly darker bird, with yellow on the rump, lower breast, and beneath the
wings. There is an ochraceous wash to the upper and under tail coverts. The
female is yellowish-olive green with a golden-yellow breast. They are found
only on Montserrat Island.<
By the time you read this, the oriole may be exterminated by the volcano that
has covered so much of the island with ash and acidic rain.<
Some birders have questioned trying to save a species threatened by so
natural an event as volcanic eruption. But there was a volcanic eruption on
Montserrat about 400 years ago, and some 16,000 years before that, and
neither they nor an endless succession of fierce hurricanes destroyed the
species.<
We know that, until Europeans arrived Montserrat, was well forested.  It was
deforestation, not natural disasters, that greatly reduced the population to
about 500 pairs.<
Then, in 1989, Hurricane Hugo slammed into the island and further depleted
the already depressed population of orioles. Now the volcano could destroy
what is left because human activity has rendered the species so vulnerable.<
I recently talked to biologist Deborah Brosnan, a biologist with the
Sustainable Ecosystems Institute who was scuba-diving offshore, studying the
local coral reefs, when a pyroclastic flow churned toward her in a terrifying
display familiar to anyone who has seen the movie, Dante's Peak. ``Just a
little more,'' she said, ``and we would have been goners.''<
Brosnan told me that deforestation has rendered the northern part of
Montserrat dry and arid.<
The oriole's last two strongholds appear to be either already destroyed or
seriously threatened by volcanic activity.<
An emergency plan is in place to catch and remove enough orioles to
potentially establish captive-breeding programs at places such as the San
Diego Zoo, in California, and at the Jersey Preservation Trust in the United
Kingdom, so the species can later be returned to Montserrat.<
Only two things are lacking in the plan, which is being spearheaded by the
Sustainable Ecosystems Institute: sufficient working capital, perhaps as
little as $30,000, and official permission from the Montserrat government,
which has sat on the proposal month after month while the situation has
steadily deteriorated and made the job of rescue increasingly risky.<
The oriole is Montserrat's national bird, and an evocative symbol of the
island's former beauty, as well as an incentive for ecotourism and source of
local pride. The oriole's habitat can restore itself, in the fullness of
time, but this unique species, once gone, can not return.<
You can help by sending a donation to the Species Ecosystems Institute, 0605
SW Taylors Ferry Road, Portland, OR 97219, USA.<
Visit the institute's website at http://www.sei.org/oriole.html.<
-30-

Date: Sun, 7 Sep 1997 14:08:57 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Weekly Hunting News
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>


This is from an Oklahoma City hunting news source:

The City of Edmond, Okla. will offer 325 archery deer hunts on
Arcadia Lake property.  This hunt coincides with the state archery
deer season which begins on Oct. 6th.  This breaks down to
13 three-day weekends.  Twenty land parcels will be assigned to
successful applicants which will be allocated by drawing at noon
on 20 Sept.  Fee is $30 and two hunters may apply together.
Hunts not filled by drawing will be sold to the public.

The Little River National Wildlife Refuge near Broken Bow, Okla.
will offer special nonbonus deer hunts on portions of the refuge this
fall.  There are schedules for the deer archery hunt, deer muzzleloader
hunts, and deer rifle hunts.  The hunts run from on Friday thru
Sat, with 40 hunters selected for each hunt.  State bag limits and
regulations will apply. The hunters will be selected by a random
drawing and each sucessful applicant, including those with lifetime
licenses, will be assessed a $20 federal user fee.

The Oklahoma Shooting Sports Complex near Arcadia, Okla. will
host the Oklahoma Ladies Charity Classic, a sporting clays event
for women only, on Sat., Oct 26th.  The event is supported by such
"giants" of the shooting industry as Browning Arms, Winchester
and White Flyer and will benefit the Oklahoma Becoming an
Outdoor Woman Workshop.

The Oklahoma Wildlife Department's new Big Game Report is
contained in the Sept-Oct issue of the department's magazine,
"Outdoor Oklahoma."  It is packed with statistics from all three
1997 deer seasons -- archery, black powder, and rifle.  The
information can be a big help in selecting a place for your hunts
this fall.  It also contains data on elk and antelope hunts.

                                                   For the Animals,

                                                   Jana, OKC

Date: Sun, 7 Sep 1997 11:26:29 -0700 (PDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: HUNGER STRIKER PROTEST SET (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"


For Immediate Release
September 7, 1997



SUNDAY TABBED FOR MILITANT
PROTEST AT DEKALB COUNTY JAIL
TO SUPPORT ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVIST

     ATLANTA û Militant animal rights activists have scheduled as major
demonstration Sunday at 2 p.m. at the DeKalb County Jail to support a
53-year-old activist they say was wrongly sentenced to jail, and is now
being mistreated by the facility.

     Activists will bring banners, signs and a huge effigy of the judge who
sentenced Sue McCrosky to 45 days Wednesday for violating a minor county
ordinance against picketing in residential areas.

     As part of her protest, and even though she is ill, Ms McCrosky continues a
complete hunger strike. Sunday will be her fifth day on the hunger strike.
She has said her strike is in sympathy with Barry Horne, a British animal
rights activist currently on hunger strike in a U.K. prison.

     Ms McCrosky, according to relatives and medical personnel, is being denied
most of her life-sustaining medication for severe hypertension by the jail.
When reached for comment the jail only stated that "sometimes we forget to
give people their medication...they'll live."

     Ms McCrosky reported that she now has numbness in her cheek and a
blurriness in her left eyes, which according to doctors, may well be a
precursor to a stroke. Thursday her blood pressure skyrocketed to 200 x 120.
She stabilized after she was administered her hypertension medication, which
the jail had failed to give her as scheduled.

     Ms McCrosky is a member of Atlanta's Animal Abuse Watch, one of the
sponsors of the April 26 demonstration against Yerkes, where 64 people were
arrested following the police use of stun grenades and tear gas. That case
is still pending.
-30-

Date: Mon, 08 Sep 1997 00:33:43 +0200
From: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Cruelty in Korea
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

I am Nuria from Barcelona.

I Korea cats and dogs are beaten, skinned and boiled alive. You can read
more about this and you will also find the mail of the Ambassador of
korea here:

http://www.geocities.com/heartland/ranch/6363/korea.htm

Thanks for your concern

Nuria
Date: Mon, 08 Sep 1997 00:43:36 +0200
From: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Bull and 4 citizens shoot
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

We are Nuria and Jordi from Barcelona.

A bull scaped from a stable in Spain. He wandered frightened around the
town and was absolutely non-violent. A special body of police called
Guardia Civil got mad and started shooting the bull to death, but in
their madness attack they also shot severely 4 citizens. I will keep
informing about this ashaming act.
Thanks for your concern,

Nuria and Jordi
Date: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 18:58:08 -0400
From: allen schubert <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) AR Lecture in Hawaii
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from private e-mail:
------------------------------
A reminder.  Tomorrow night, Monday, September 8, at 7pm, is our regular
Vegetarian Society of Hawaii  monthly meeting.  It will be held at the
Ala Wai golf course clubhouse, as usual.

Cathy Goeggel of Animal Rights Hawaii will be our speaker.  She is a
dynamic lady, a vegetarian, and member of our organization.  The title of
her talk is: "This is a revolution dammit, we are bound to offend
someone." This should be a very interesting evening.

Date: Mon, 08 Sep 1997 00:54:31 +0200
From: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Bull and 4 citizens shot
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

[e-mail] wrote:
>
> We are Nuria and Jordi from Barcelona.
>
> A bull scaped from a stable in Spain. He wandered frightened around the
> town and was absolutely non-violent. A special body of police called
> Guardia Civil got mad and started shooting the bull to death, but in
> their madness attack they also shot severely 4 citizens. I will keep
> informing about this ashaming act.
> Thanks for your concern,
>
> Nuria and Jordi
Date: Mon, 08 Sep 1997 00:55:00 +0200
From: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Cruelty in Korea
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-transfer-encoding: 8bit

[e-mail] wrote:
>
> Tio, el que podries fer es escriure-la i li expliques com podria ajudar
> als putus animals, i escriure a PeTA dient-los que intentin atraure a la
> Martina.
> >
> > Bh, em fan pagar per veure la revista. De moment li donare el benefici del dubte, pero com
m'enteri que.....
> >
> > ----------
> > > De: [e-mail]
> > > A: [e-mail]
> > > Asunto: Cruelty in Korea
> > > Fecha: dilluns, 8 / setembre / 1997 00:33
> > >
> > > I am Nuria from Barcelona.
> > >
> > > I Korea cats and dogs are beaten, skinned and boiled alive. You can read
> > > more about this and you will also find the mail of the Ambassador of
> > > korea here:
> > >
> > > http://www.geocities.com/heartland/ranch/6363/korea.htm
> > >
> > > Thanks for your concern
> > >
> > > Nuria
Date: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 20:31:53 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Kathryn A Laszlo)
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US-MN) Hunters found on bear sanctuary
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Published Sep 7, 1997
Doug Smith
Star Tribune, Minneapolis/St. Paul

By all account. Paul

By all accounts, it's a remarkable bear.

Wildlife biologists have trapped a rare light-colored black bear in
northern Minnesota and are studying it genetically.

The bear was virtually white earlier this year when it began visiting the
Vince Chute Wildlife Sanctuary near Orr, said Bill Lea, whose American
Bear Association runs the sanctuary. "The summer coat is a buff brown,"
he said.

The Department of Natural Resources decided to trap the bear to protect
it from harvest during the current bear hunting season, which opened
Sept. 1. Officials want to determine if it is genetically similar to
light-colored bears found primarily in a small area of British Columbia.

"It's the lightest colored bear I've ever seen," said Pam Coy, DNR
wildlife technician who helped capture the bear. Blood and hair samples
have been collected, and the bear is being held in an undisclosed
location for its protection.

DNR officials noted that light-colored bears are rare, and the genetic
causes are not clearly understood, but the aberrations are not albinos.
The bear could turn white this fall, as the British Columbia bears do.

Lea said the white bear isn't the only excitement at the sanctuary, which
attracts bears for viewing by putting out feed. He said some bear hunters
were found on and near the non-profit 360-acre sanctuary before the
season, prompting him to close it to the public. One bear was later shot
by a hunter near the sanctuary, he said.

"Most hunters are very supportive of what we do. We have hunters within
our organization," Lea said. But it isn't ethical for hunters to hunt
bears just outside the sanctuary, he said.

"We can't with clear conscience operate a sanctuary if people will try to
take advantage of situation."

Copyright 1997 Star Tribune | Minneapolis-St.Paul





Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997 09:48:53 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Farmers may halt spread of deadly rabbit disease (New Zealand)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Farmers may halt spread on legal advice
(New Zealand)
by Howard Keene

Farmers may "think twice" about spreading rabbit calicivirus after a legal
opinion that says it is an offence to do so.

The legal opinion obtained by the Canterbury and Otago regional councils
contradicts Government advice given to farmers.

Canterbury Regional Council acting chief executive John Talbot told an
emergency meeting yesterday: "We have had clear legal advice it is an
offence to spread RCD."

He said the opinion found that spreading the disease was illegal under the
Animals Act and the Biosecurity Act. The opinion opened up the possibility
of criminal liability from people adversely affected by RCD.

Acting chairman George Twentyman said it would be hard to bring a
prosecution, and if it was done it should be done at a national level.

Tony Wall, of Simons Pass station, said some farmers would now think twice
about spreading the disease, but others would continue.

Last week high country farmers admitted to spreading the virus after saying
they had assurances from Ministry of Agriculture chief veterinary officer
Barry O'Neil that they had not broken the law by spreading the virus.

Before a parliamentary select committee on Wednesday, ministry officials
again said spreading the disease was not illegal. However, a Crown Law
Office opinion had been sought.

Cr Christine Kelland, of South Canterbury, said the public perception was
that the farmers had acted legally. Councillors voted six to four to urge
the Government to allow an appropriate strain of RCD to be legally imported.

The council voted not to help farmers spread the virus under its present status

===========================================

Rabbit Information Service,
P.O.Box 30,
Riverton,
Western Australia 6148

Email>  [e-mail]

http://www.wantree.com.au/~rabbit/rabbit.htm
(Rabbit Information Service website updated frequently)

     /`\   /`\
    (/\ \-/ /\)
       )6 6(
     >{= Y =}<
      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
      |     |}
 jgs  \_/^\_/













Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997 09:50:52 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (HK) Troublesome cattle find peaceful island home
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"


>South China Morning Post
Monday  September 8  1997


     Troublesome cattle find peaceful island home

     BILLY WONG WAI-YUK

     Stray cattle disrupting traffic on Lantau Island and the New
Territories have been given     a new home on Shek Kwu Chau with
rehabilitating drug addicts.

     Thirty-two unclaimed buffalo and cattle started a new life on the
island last month,     according to the Agriculture and Fisheries Department.

     They are being looked after by staff and recovering drug abusers from
the Shek Kwu     Chau Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre.

     A group of philanthropists set up the Stray Cattle Befrienders' Fund
after learning that animals were rounded up in Tung Chung during the Tsing
Ma Bridge opening in May.

     "It's so sad to see these animals put down after their ancestors
contributed a lot to     Hong Kong's farming," one member of the charity
group said.

     She hoped the charity could end a headache for the Government after public
     complaints that the animals were disrupting traffic and attacking humans.

     The Agriculture and Fisheries Department estimated about 3,000 cattle
were roaming     the New Territories and Lantau after their owners released
them into the wild as     farming activity decreased.

     "We bought the buffalo from the department and the drug treatment
centre agreed to     keep them as neighbours," said the charity spokesman.

A department spokesman said many people had wanted to buy the cattle after
seeing     news coverage of the animals appearing at the Tsing Ma Bridge
opening.

     "We have sold 32 buffalo and cattle to the group for $16,500 to cover
the cost of     tranquillisers used for catching the animals," he said.

Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997 09:52:26 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (AU) Kangaroo and emu seen as saviours of environment
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>SOuth China Morning Post
Monday  September 8  1997

     Kangaroo and emu seen as saviours of environment

     RACHEL BRIDGE in Sydney

     The average Australian male likes nothing better than to throw a slab
of beef on the     barbecue or to sit down to a hearty breakfast of steak
and eggs.

     If a growing band of scientists have their way, however, the nation
could soon be sitting     down to kangaroo burgers and emu steaks instead as
experts warn of the serious     damage being done to fragile topsoil by
cattle and sheep hooves.
Indeed, scientists say that unless Australia radically changes its eating
habits and
embraces native cuisine it could rapidly become an environmental wasteland.

     Professor Michael Archer, professor of biological science at the
University of New     South Wales, pointed out that kangaroos were much less
harmful to the land than cattle     or sheep, and said that breeding them
instead could save farms affected by drought and     soil problems.

     "We need to change the mindset that Australia has to ride on the back
of sheep or     cattle," he said. "The solution seems so obvious it is
difficult to imagine why it has not     been seized on before."

     Professor Gordon Grigg, a leading zoologist from Brisbane, has
meanwhile embarked     on a major marketing campaign to persuade people to
eat kangaroo, saying: "We need     to look for ways to reduce the total
grazing pressure and the best way to do that is reduce the total number of
sheep. We've got to think about the long term here. The     way we are going
is simply pressing grazing land towards deserts."

     "The idea is growing in momentum," he said. "Recently, kangaroo meat
has become     legal for human consumption in Australia and the idea has
strong support from all of the     ecologists and scientists within
Australia. It is just a matter of time."

Date: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 21:56:19 -0400
From: jeanlee <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Cruelty in Korea
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1


In case anyone wants to write to the Korean Ambassador in the U.S.,
here's his address and the letter I recently wrote.  If you wish to use
the letter, feel free to do so.  I recommend changing it somewhat so it
doesn't look like a form letter.


Korean Ambassador to the United States
Korean Embassy
2450 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC  20008

Dear Mr. Ambassador:

I have been reading with shock and horror about the fact that your
countrymen think dog meat is so wonderful and that consumption is rising
to the point that two dog slaughterhouses are to open this year to meet
the growing demand.  The slaughterhouses are to open on Cheju Island,
one of South KoreaÆs best-known tourist islands.  The conditions under
which the animals are kept and slaughtered are barbaric.

You should be concerned about your international image and ban dog meat
by invoking a law that prohibits the sale of such foods as ôunsightly,ö
as Seoul did.  Unfortunately, it was left up to regional authorities to
decide which foods fall into that category.

Perhaps you think that since the United States slaughters animals, we
have no right to criticize.  I personally donÆt eat any slaughtered
animals and am distressed that my fellow Americans choose to do so, but
even people who do eat animals are very offended by your countryÆs
eating animals they consider beloved companions.  And they have tourist
dollars.  Perhaps you think itÆs still none of my business in general,
as an American.  However, I am a consumer of your countryÆs products.
This will all change now - itÆs really easy to avoid buying anything
ôMade in Korea.ö  This change in  my buying habits will continue until I
learn that changes have been made in your countryÆs practices concerning
animals.  And I would never contemplate visiting such a country.   I
will also educate anyone I can,  especially over the Internet, about the
practices of Korea, Taiwan, and the Phillipines and the unspeakable
cruelty shown by these countries and others to animals who are homeless
and/or destined to be eaten.

Sincerely yours,
Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997 10:09:01 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (JP) Butchered pets strike fear in Kanto region
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>Asahi Evening News
7 Sept 97

Butchered pets strike fear in Kanto region

By TARO KARASAKI


School principal Shigeru Hagihara said he wanted to teach students about
morality and responsibility
when he let a second-grade class keep pet rabbits at Motogo Minami
Elementary School in
Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture.

Ironically, the lesson turned into horror last month when dogs killed four
of the children's five rabbits
in a pen that apparently had been pried open by the owner of the dogs.

It was one in a recent string of attacks on school pets that has fueled
fears in the Kanto area. Many
have taken these attacks as a warning signs that their children could be the
next targets.

On the morning of Aug. 22, the school's custodian in Kawaguchi woke up to
the sound of barking
dogs. When he entered the schoolyard, he saw two large black dogs growling
outside the rabbit
cage. Two other dogs were inside the pen. The custodian managed to scare off
the animals.

The dead rabbits were bitten in the neck.

"It appears as if someone had pried open the fence," said Hagihara, looking
at the snarled wire of
the empty cage.

"The children are clearly shocked," he said last week, just after delivering
a speech to schoolchildren
returning from summer vacation. He said the 89 students were "eerily quiet"
when he explained what
had happened to the rabbits.


Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997 10:09:07 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (JP) Barking mad at animal abuse
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"


>Asahi Evening News
7 Sept 97

Barking mad at animal abuse

Police indifference to acts of barbaric cruelty against animals in Japan
shows the need for stricter legal protection of animals, while activists say
the public also needs to be taught about responsible care of pets.

By ROY K. AKAGAWA

The horrific Kobe case of the murder of two young children has spotlighted
the lack of concern in Japan for treatment of animals.
Reports that the 15-year-old murder suspect, a junior high school student
arrested in late June, cut out the tongues of cats among other cruel acts
against animals, prompted Elizabeth Oliver of Osaka to write a letter to the
Asahi Evening News, appealing for a stricter law to protect animals against
abuse.

Oliver is the director of Animal Refuge Kansai (ARK), an animal shelter in a
rural part of Osaka Prefecture that is close to the borders of Kyoto and
Hyogo prefectures. ARK was last in the news after the Great Hanshin
Earthquake, when it found itself taking care of close to 600 animals, mostly
pets that had nowhere to go when their owners were forced into temporary
accommodation.

Oliver, a British citizen who has lived in Japan now for almost 30 years,
voices a criticism commonly heard among animal welfare advocates in Japan
about the current Law for the Protection and Control of Animals.

"The law is like a sieve because there is no definition of cruelty," she
said. "It will be very difficult to prosecute if you don't know what cruelty
is."

Another group, the Tokyo-based Citizens Conference for Consideration of
Nature and Animals, is collecting signatures to petition the government to
strengthen the law's provisions.

Spokeswoman Yoko Shimizu said the group had already gathered about 190,000
signatures, close to its target of at least 200,000.

Diet members whom the group has contacted are showing increasing interest,
even those belonging to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Shimizu said.
The recent Kobe murder incident, as well as past reports that Tsutomu
Miyazaki--who is appealing a death sentence handed down earlier this
year for the serial murders of four young girls in 1988 and 1989 in Tokyo
and Saitama Prefecture--had also killed dogs and cats before he committed
the crimes, has apparently convinced some lawmakers that taking action
against animal cruelty might stem more violent acts against humans.

Shimizu said the group was hopeful that debate on amending the animal
protection law could begin as soon as the next extraordinary session of the
Diet convenes, expected later this month.

In addition to spelling out concrete examples of cruelty in a revision of
the animal protection law, the Citizens Conference also advocates the
licensing of animal vendors as well as stricter penalties for acts of cruelty.

Under the current provisions, the maximum penalty for an act of cruelty
against an animal is only 30,000 yen. Animal welfare advocates say that the
low figure dissuades police from actively seeking out perpetrators of
cruelty against animals.
Tomomi Hagiwara of the Japan Anti-Vivisection Association (JAVA) cited the
case in February of a cat in Tomakomai, Hokkaido that was apparently set on
fire with either gasoline or kerosene. Family members found the burning cat
and took it to a veterinarian, but with about 70 percent of the cat's
skin burned, the animal died within a week.

Is burning a cat not a crime?

Police handled the case as an incident of damage to property since a
building near the home of the cat's family had also been burned, but no
suspect was ever arrested.

Hagiwara said a study by JAVA found that in Britain a similar case would
have been treated by police as abuse of animals, and the perpetrator would
have been liable to a maximum penalty of 5,000 pound, roughly 1 million yen,
or up to six months in prison.
In addition to a stronger law, ARK's Oliver said she would also like to see
a more extensive network of animal shelters to care for homeless dogs and cats.

She said the lack of an established animal welfare system in Japan made it
difficult to take care of all the animals in need. In the West, she added,
most communities have five or six animal shelters, and people who find
abandoned animals have a number of alternatives when one is full and they
themselves are unwilling or unable to take care of the animal. However, she
said in Japan there are no other shelters in the Kansai region where people
could take the animals, since ARK is at full capacity now.

"In Japan, it's either take the animal to the hokensho (public health
center) or throw the animal away," she said. "There is nothing in between.
So, of course, people will contact us. The more publicity we get, the more
people think this is a place they can take their animals."

She said ARK gets about 15 calls daily involving such cases and these people
have to be told that with 300 animals in ARK's care there is no more room.

"For every one animal we take, there are thousands that need help, but we
have limitations of space and people," she said. "That's the same as
sanctuaries everywhere in the world."

A study in 1996 by JAVA also points to the fact that dogs and cats taken to
the public health centers were more often put to death than placed in a new
home or returned to their owners.

A survey of all prefectures and cities that were responsible for compiling
statistics on the number of dogs and cats captured or brought into the
public health centers found that 16,095 dogs were returned to their homes in
1995 while another 10,758 were adopted. A total of 414,506 dogs were
killed.

In the same year, of the 313,812 cats brought in to public health centers,
only 51 were returned home. Another 1,605 were adopted and a total of
307,626 cats were killed.

A report by ARK made a dramatic contrast to the situation in Britain where
of the stray dogs taken in by wardens between 1993 and 1995, about 20
percent were returned directly to the owners, another 30 percent were later
claimed by owners at animal shelters, and about 35 percent were
adopted by new owners. Only the remaining 15 percent of the dogs were put to
death.

The reason for the low percentage of pets that are returned to their owners
in Japan is that most owners do not begin seriously looking for lost pets
until a few days have elapsed, said JAVA's Hagiwara. In that time, the
animals may have been picked up by the local authorities and taken to the
pound where they are likely to be killed in a short period of time.

Tags little help in being found
Hagiwara also said the poor quality of the license tags given to dog owners
who register their pets at local city offices is another reason owners are
not readily notified that their pets have been picked
up. She said that since the licenses are likely to be damaged and lost after
the dog has been outside for a while, many owners simply remove the licenses
as a precaution.

Oliver added that better identification of pets, including eventually
implanting microchips into the animals, would not only ensure that pet
owners would be able to locate their pets should they roam from home, but
would also allow the authorities to track down irresponsible owners who
simply abandoned the animals.

ARK now takes care of about 300 animals, which is about double the number
that was being taken care of prior to the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995.
After the earthquake, the ARK complex
was flooded with animals from owners who lost their homes and, at one time,
as many as 600 animals were being cared for, Oliver said.

ARK tries to take in only really bad cases, including animals that have been
abused or injured.

There are many calls from pet owners who want a new home for their animals
because a change in residence means pets can no longer be cared for, she
said. Oliver tries to tell such pet owners to find new homes on their own
for their pets, but occasionally her group is forced to care for animals that
are abandoned outside the ARK complex during the middle of the night.

In the past two or three years, there have been more cases of people having
to give up their pets because of a move to smaller quarters due to financial
reasons, she said. Oliver thought these cases
were a result of the bursting of the asset-inflated bubble economy.

Another common case of referrals to ARK is people who find abandoned animals
but are unable to look after the rescued animal themselves. These people
turn around and call ARK to ask that it takecare of the animal. Oliver tries
to convince these people to take care of the animal themselves or to
look for another home for it.

While Oliver said finding new homes for the animals in the care of ARK was
an important task, she added that it was difficult to find new homes for
most of the animals because most people prefer puppies or kittens rather
than adult pets.

This tendency to prefer young animals, as well as purebred dogs and cats as
opposed to mongrels, also points to a difference in pet ownership between
Japan and the West.

Oliver said that it was common for families in Britain to find their pets in
animal shelters. In Japan, many potential pet owners go to pet shops where
they spend large amounts of money for whatever purebred dog happens to be in
fashion, she said.

"People just do not seem to think very much before they get an animal," she
said. "They buy very much on impulse and they don't consider how much space
and time it will take."

In extreme cases, Oliver said some people do not realize that the pets will
get big.

"In one case, we got a call from a woman who bought an Akita and she said
she didn't know it would grow to be so big," she said.

Oliver also said that the periodic booms in popularity of certain dog breeds
means that public health centers tend to have inordinate numbers of certain
types of dogs a few years after the boom dies down.

For example, a short-term boom in huskies a few years ago has now led to
many of these dogs being found recently in pounds after being sent from
public health centers. She added that with the recent decline in popularity
of golden retrievers among Japanese dog owners there may bea rise of
those dogs ending up in pounds from next year.

She said the past popularity of huskies in Japan was a good example of the
lack of knowledge about dogs in Japan.

"Huskies are totally unsuited for an ordinary Japanese house. They're too
big, they're difficult to train, they're not suited to the climate and they
are not suited to being a family dog," she said.

Lack of controls over pet shops also leads to problems, Oliver said. Because
there is no licensing system, pet shops are not required to meet any
standards for hygiene and handling of animals. Even when problems are
discovered with pets they have sold, the owners of the pet shops are often
unable to offer any help because they lack a solid background in pet care,
Oliver pointed out.

Oliver referred to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of
Animals in Britain, which was established in 1824, as a model for Japan. She
said the RSPCA's inspectors have powers that are
equivalent to the police and can go after individuals who treat animals
cruelly and also check into conditions at pet shops.

While animal abuse is not a problem confined to Japan, Oliver said she felt
the issue in Japan was more a lack of education on pet care.

"Our main objective is really education--just trying to raise the level of
caring for the needs of animals," she said.

ARK has about 4,000 members and supporters, who receive a quarterly
newsletter. Since most are generally aware of the problems pets and animals
face in Japan, its educational effect is negligible.

On her frequent visits to schools in the Kansai region, Oliver has found
that children are often unsureof how to approach the dogs she brings with
her. However, since the children become more comfortable around the animals
after an hour or so, she concludes that greater efforts to educate the
children would go a long way in improving the treatment of animals.

In her native Britain, Oliver said there are many animal welfare societies
that undertake education programs to help British children learn from an
early age how to treat and touch an animal.

Ignorance, rather than intentional cruelty, was also the main cause of the
mistreatment of animals confined in Japanese zoos that was criticized last
year by a visiting British researcher, Oliver said.
Thinking of the situation from the viewpoint of the animal would lead to
imaginative methods to improve the environment without necessarily spending
a lot of money to reconstruct the zoos, she believes.

It is this type of thinking that has led Oliver to decide against chaining
animals at ARK to posts.

Lack of knowledge is often cited as another reason for the low level of
acceptance among the general public for the gelding, vasectomy or spaying of
pets to prevent unwanted births.

Oliver added that Japanese perceptions about what is considered natural also
impedes understanding about the need for such sterilization.

"People are against anything that interferes with nature," she said.

JAVA's Hagiwara said disseminating more information on sterilization would
go a long way toward reducing the number of dogs and cats put to death at
public health centers.

The 1996 JAVA study found that between 70 and 80 percent of animals killed
in 1995 were newly-born puppies and kittens. Hagiwara said this meant that
many pet owners were likely
abandoning the animals because they felt they would be unable to properly
care for them. Oliver said the recent popularity of the virtual pet
Tamagotchi was indicative of the fact that many children have very little
direct contact with animals.

In the current state of animal welfare in Japan, she added that it was
probably better to give children mechanical toys rather than buy them real
pets. "I'm in favor of anything that doesn't use a live animal," Oliver said.

Hagiwara of JAVA said that improving the condition of animals in Japan would
in turn help to raise the level of human lives as well.

"Nations that have low levels of welfare for animals also have low levels of
welfare programs for humans," Hagiwara pointed out. Preventing cruelty to
animals would also lead to a decrease in crueland horrible crimes against
humans, she added.




</pre>

     <!-- END OF PAGE CONTENT -->



                            <!-- END OF PAGE CONTENT -->

    </TD>


    <TD width=50 align=center>

    </TD>
</TR>

                            <!-- THE BOTTOM TOOLBAR -->

<TR>

    <TD colspan=3 align=center fontsize=2>
    <a href="../SUB~1.HTM" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/sub.html">ARRS Tools</a>  |
<a href="../NEWSPA~1.HTM" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/newspage.html">News</a>  |
<a href="../ORGS~1.HTM" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/Orgs.html">Orgs</a>  |
<a href="../SEARCH~1.HTM" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/search.html">Search</a>  |
<a href="../SUPPOR~1.HTM" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/Support.html">Support</a>  |
<a href="../ABOUT/INDEX.HTM" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/about">About the ARRS</a>  |
<a href="mailto:[e-mail]">Contact ARRS</a>
    </TD>
</TR>


                                <!-- END OF MAIN -->

</TABLE></center>




        <!-- THE UNDERWRITERS -->

<table border=0 width=100%>
    <tr><td>

<center>    <hr width=285>
<Font Size=1>THIS SITE UNDERWRITTEN IN PART BY:</FONT>
<BR>


<a href="../../../tppmsgs/msgs22.htm#2206" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/cgi-bin/show_support.pl?id=t891282189&sec=sbn_bottom&url=http%3a//www.outpost.com" target=_top><img src="../../SUPPORT/BANNERS/OTHERS/CYBERIAN/G3.GIF" tppabs="http://www.envirolink.org/support/banners/others/cyberian/g3.gif" border=1 alt="Cyberian Outpost"></a>


<hr width=285>

    <br><font size=2>
    <b>The views and opinions expressed within this page are not
necessarily those of the <br>EnviroLink Network nor the Underwriters.  The views
are those of the authors of the work.</b></font>
    </center>
    </td></tr>

</table>

</BODY>

</HTML>




</BODY>



</HTML>