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LA TRINIDAD, Benguet (Philippines) —
Most dogs would love to get on top of the dinner table, but what a
cruel irony it is when they end up being the main course. Such
was almost the fate of 52 terrified pooches who were minutes away from
being slaughtered at an illegal dog meat restaurant in Baguio. But
on the morning of Oct. 5, volunteers of the London-based Political
Animal Lobby and Philippine authorities raided Comiles Restaurant
just in time to save most of the intended victims. Fourteen dogs
had already been slaughtered when the rescuers arrived at
dawn. Volunteers "witnessed three men about to kill a
muzzled dog with a piece of wood," The
Philippine Star reports.1 The
Criminal
Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) took three butchers into
custody but later released them. Banarchy
According to the Star, Saturday's
raid was the first action taken against illegal dog slaughterhouses
this year.
For years, Philippine authorities have been
ineffective at maintaining the dog meat ban which was first set in
place by President Ferdinand Marcos in
the 80s. The initiative was undermined by regional authorities
such as Governor Ben Palispis who
lobbied for the lifting of the ban.
In 1996, pro-animal politicians in La
Trinidad tried again with a bold resolution
ordering all restaurants in the province to serve vegetable
dishes only. However, "nothing happened to it, because of
the [people's] love for dog meat," said Mike Esteban,
an aide of former Benguet Gov. Raul
Molintas. "It's dog meat that they
want." 2
Finally in 1998, Congress passed Republic
Act 8485 - The Animal Welfare Act, which prohibits "the
killing of any animal rather than cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, poultry,
rabbits, carabaos, horses, deer and crocodiles." 3 It
was signed into law by then Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos on
Feb. 11, 1998.
The law drew immediate protest from dog
meat establishments—particularly Comiles Restaurant, the site of
last week's raid. Owner Carmen Comiles Beray
was quoted saying in Feb. 1998: "We serve no other meat except
dog... I do not know what we will do now." 2
Philippine animal welfare groups have been
steadily intensifying their campaigns against animal cruelty and other
violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
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Out of the frying pan
and into the law books.
This puppy's unpleasant culinary experience was what prompted the
government to say "NO" to dog meat. (Photo: Craig Sillitoe / The
Age)
Guess Where They're About to Outlaw Dog Meat...
MELBOURNE, Victoria (Australia) — If
you think all the people in your corner of the globe are too civilized to
eat dogs, you might get a shock out of this one.
Victoria, home of the world-famous Melbourne City Opera (see "Opera-Singing
Dog") and some of the finest wines in the South Pacific (see "Booze
Hounds - New Zealand"), is scrambling this month to come up with
legislation that will ban the human consumption of dogs.
"We, like most Victorians, view the practice as abhorrent,"
says Agriculture Minister Keith
Hamilton, adding that the Victorian government wants to stop people
from engaging in the practice of eating dogs and cats.
The issue surfaced last week after the
nearly-tragic story of "Occy" was published in the Moonee
Valley Community News. Occy, a 10-week-old Staffordshire
mix, was seen being held in a plastic bag by a man at a Niddrie shopping
strip. The unidentified man, said to be of foreign
appearance, pointed to the puppy and suggestively brought his hand to his
mouth several times.
Bystander Rebecca Silva came to the rescue and snatched Occy
away. Several other shoppers also confronted the man who allegedly
demanded money for the dog.
Occy was returned to the home of Erin Marquis and Shannon Richter
(pictured above). It is not known whether the pup had escaped his
backyard or whether somebody had stolen him.
Ms. Marquis told reporters she could not believe someone was planning
to eat her dog. "People in Australia go and get a pie, not a
dog," she said.
At the moment, it is not illegal for people to eat dogs, cats or horses
in Australia. However, there are existing laws that prevent the
slaughter and sale or inhumane treatment of companion animals (dogs, cats and
horses).
RSPCA president Hugh Wirth says it's about time
the government took the subject seriously. Although the RSPCA has
struggled for years to get a total ban imposed, Dr. Wirth says he has been
repeatedly told by ministers and government advisers that they could not
act for fear of offending minority groups, who might enjoy the occasional
dog or cat.4
But Mr. Wirth insists: "The dog was the
first animal domesticated by humans and has a very special relationship
with us because of that, a place unequalled by any other animal."
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