| special
animal rescue report
Pride,
Poison and Prejudice around the Parthenon.
Part
3, page 2 - Backgrounds of Greece and other countries cited as cruel to
animals
(For
Part 1 of this 3 part report click here)
< continued from part 3 page one
Echoes
of Arabia
A short boat trip
across the Aegean Sea brings you to Turkey, which shares almost identical
attitudes to Greece regarding street animals. In some ways the situation
there could be considered worse, not due to more numbers of strays but
because less rescue groups currently exist in the country. A few basic
shelters can be found in the major cities, but in rural areas almost
nothing. Street animals generally receive next to no affection or protection
from the majority of Turks, and there appears to be very little constructive
dialogue amongst Turkish authorities on how to deal humanely with the
stray problem. The result is a periodic round-up and slaughter of thousands
animals across the country.
But Turkey is a
place of cultural and ethical significance. It acts as a metaphorical
gateway between two of the world's most dramatically different cultural
faiths - the "West" and Islam, and from this point, the further you
travel east, religion takes the leading role in all aspects of society.
With complex beliefs and diverse customs within Muslim / Islamic based
society, it's important to approach the subject of animal welfare -
along with any social issue - with respect, patience and overall consideration
of the culture.
The Qur'an in fact states that all creatures on earth are sentient beings.
Even so, there is concern within Islam about the excessive mistreatment
of animals in the name of religion. Dogs are traditionally seen as impure,
and Muslims are misleadingly warned to avoid contact with them, which
has led to many being abused and neglected. Misinformed Muslims have
been taking their pets to clinics during Ramadan to have them put down.
This is because they think that Islam forbids them to keep or even touch
a dog, but on the contrary, the Qur'an highly encourages the blessing
and care for all animals.
Each year, millions of Muslims worldwide celebrate Eid al-Adha, the
festival of sacrifice. This comes at the end of the "once in a lifetime"
Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca for the Hajj. The Eid al-Adha celebrations
require the ritual killing of an animal and Muslims are supposed to
personally slaughter the animal. But an "out of sight out of mind" method
(borrowed from the west) is normal practice these days, by getting a
butcher to do the actual killing instead. For these Islamic celebrations
the throats of literally millions of live animals are cut. They bleed
to death, slowly and agonisingly.
As with more remote
parts of Asia and its sub-continents, far-flung African cultures usually
have more direct and what they might consider "spiritual" contact with
their animals for the purpose of food. All members of families may be
personally responsible for killing the animal that he or she will eat
themselves. However cruel this may seem to the animal-loving west -
who have their meat slaughtered and pre-packed for them - could this
be considered more barbaric - or less hypocritical?
Too
Starved to Samba
But there are some
countries where not even religion or superstition can provide a cultural
pretext for cruelty to animals.
Latin America is broadly made up of Portuguese and Spanish settlers
from the 16th century who conquered / integrated with Central and South
American natives.
The Americas are such a melting pot of cultures, that historical tradition
carried over from their former backgrounds across the Atlantic isn't
so inherently imprinted. Therefore, folklore and customary superstition
is regarded more celebratory rather than religiously followed. But even
so, bullfighting is highly active in Mexico, Peru, Panama Venezuela,
Guatemala and Columbia - but banned in Uruguay, Chile, Argentina and
Cuba.
So, does historical custom have less relevance as to why Latin American
street animals are treated so badly?
For example, Brazil has developed into a somewhat prosperous democracy,
albeit through a history of past military government rule, unconstitutional
behaviour and environmental destruction that continues to draw condemnation
from international ecologists and human rights groups.
What is visibly clear on the streets of a Brazilian city like Sao Paulo
is the general, sickening mistreatment of domestic animals, which makes
Athens look like a veritable paradise for cats and dogs. From its original
foundation as a hybrid culture into a modern society, there is no traditional
"excuse" as to why Brazil treats its cats and dogs with such disregard
… much of its population simply feel little or no empathy towards these
creatures. Street animals are considered no more than vermin or else
as a chained deterrent to guard properties - so it's easy for the international
community to generalise much of South America as ignorant and grossly
uneducated about animal care. With very few animal welfare groups in
Latin America to help change attitudes and educate the public, the future
of their cats and dogs continues to look bleak.
photo: Greek
Animal Rescue UK |
Left:
Starved dogs chained to posts are considered by their owners as no
more than a barking "alarm" in many South American and Mediterranean
countries. |
Yin,
Yan... and Lateral Leadership
What happens when
entire subcontinents of cultures - along with their opportunist governments
- lack a general interest or empathy towards animal rights? It clearly
becomes difficult for outside countries to suggest humane solutions
to a problem that the offending nation doesn't even recognise. Therefore,
to appease such countries, subtle methods to initiate change need to
be made, and in a way that's diplomatically appealing … i.e. profitable
to them.
For example, many welfare groups focus on tourist destinations such
as Greece to highlight mistreatment of a country's animals. Although
great awareness providers, just telling people how bad it is doesn't
give concerned tourists an active path to encourage the country's authorities
to respond. But then again, such countries are unlikely to see diplomatic
and economical sense in acting on small pockets of outside protest,
which from their point might be viewed as low level agitation. In fact,
it seems now that internet based protest letters have little impact
on the offending governments; they simply close down the targeted e-mail
address so to ignore the protest. However, a good animal welfare organisation
might provide tourists with information to instigate change on more
lateral levels; like a "what you can do to help" approach. For example,
by informing the offending country's tourist board your clear intention
not to travel there and spend your money, simply because of their bad
animal welfare record. This is not good news for a country which might
financially rely heavily on tourist spending.
But even more diplomatically, a well researched animal organisation
might also provide details of a resort within an offending country that's
in fact animal friendly, like Catalonia's Tossa de Mar on the Spanish
Costa Brava for example. There they have banned bullfighting … a move
which no doubt gives credibility and further food for thought for the
Spanish government. It's positive publicity and everyone benefits.
In fact,
while it can be all too easy to generalise about entire nations cited
as cruel to street animals, some regions inside those countries do make
some efforts to combat overpopulation in a more humane way. This can
be seen in the Canary Islands - also part of Spain - who promote neutering
programs to control its stray cat population. Although not the most
attractive method of identification, cats have one ear clipped to show
they are officially neutered and vaccinated. This means that a manageable
population of cats are allowed to roam free around the tourist spots,
and animal friendly holiday makers can feed them at designated feeding
stations. Although controlling the cat population of the Canaries is
a constant battle for its authorities, they appear to administer a more
compassionate form of management to the problem. The result is that
a lot of the cats seem to be in a healthy condition. This means a happier
life for the animals and, on a shallower point, a less traumatic sight
for visitors.
Any country's government could very well introduce transparent methods
to encourage other nations cited for animal cruelty to clean up their
act.
For example, holiday companies could be legally required to provide
key information about the animal friendliness of specific resorts and
destinations. The resorts in those countries might not feel so comfortable
about such home truths at first, but soon they could realise the economical
benefits of such partnerships; administrating certified humane care
of their local animal population, overseen by their local animal welfare
organisations.
**********
So many people throughout
the world are so emotionally incensed by the mistreatment of animals,
yet animal welfare is not a running daily subject on any government's
domestic or international agenda. Although humanitarian questions are
internationally debated, no government yet realises how much economical
leverage the issue of animal welfare can have towards positive, cooperative
agreements on a global scale. However, in June 2004 a Dutch animal welfare
party missed being elected a seat in the European parliament by only
a few votes short. Perhaps this heralds a beginning to proper animal
welfare representation inside politics.
But while animal
cruelty is clear to see on the surface in some countries, other cultures
like the UK and America hide more sensitive animal welfare issues under
a huge trade system, which goes hand in hand with consumer ignorance
or apathy ... As mentioned earlier, "Out of sight, out of mind" seems
to satisfy the conscience of the general British and US mindset. And
again, twisted logic (this time, a displaced sense of self-righteousness)
seems to suggest that countries like Britain and America may feel justified
to point a finger at countries black-listed for clear, visible animal
cruelty.
So how would any of those black listed countries react if - say a British
official - walked into the Brazilian government and said, "The way your
country treats its stray animal population is disgusting … sort it out!"?
The Brazilians are unlikely to reply "Oh my goodness, you are so right;
we'll deal with it immediately, in the most humane way possible!" Thoroughly
insulted, they are more likely to respond with, "Get lost you interfering
Brit; we've got far more important things to deal with than our cats
and dogs … go sort your own animal welfare hypocrisy out before telling
us what to do!"
This kind of example could cross-apply to any country.
It indicates that culturally spawned jingoism and self-protection is
rife across the entire world, but at the same time shows how important
it can be to think laterally. In other words, apply internationally
linked legislations in your own country, which can cause subliminal
action in others, and be economically beneficial to all at the same
time. Continued
>
Continued
... click here for next page>
Pride, Poison and Prejudice around the Parthenon MENU
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1 - Main Story
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Two of Part 3 - Backgrounds of Greece and other countries cited as cruel
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This article was last updated in: August 2004
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