Day: December 4, 2019
US House Passes Bill to Ban Cruel Shark Finning
Posted by Katie Valentine | November 27, 2019
In an important step toward an animal rights victory, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act (H.R. 737) last week.
Representatives Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan of the Marianas Islands and Michael McCaul of Texas introduced the bill in January. It amassed 288 cosponsors and passed by a vote of 310-107.
If the act passes through the Senate, it will effectively ban the sale, possession, and purchase of shark fins within the United States. Nearly 200 restaurants throughout the country offer shark fin products, despite prohibitive legislation in several states, according to a database maintained by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI).
Canada passed a similar ban in June, as the world’s largest shark fin importer outside of Asia. The legislative move speaks volumes about how people around the world are increasingly valuing the welfare of animals over profit and culinary tradition.
Every year, 73 million sharks lose their lives to the global shark fin trade. Fins are often harvested from sharks while they’re still alive, and the helpless animals are tossed back into the ocean to bleed, suffocate, fall victim to a predator, or otherwise suffer and die.
“Sharks have existed for hundreds of millions of years on this planet, and yet these remarkable apex predators now face one of the biggest threats to their survival because of the demand for their fins,” AWI President Cathy Liss remarked in a recent press release.
Twelve states and three U.S. territories have already banned shark fin sales. By enacting this commonsense legislation, Congress would demonstrate an unwillingness to contribute to the threats facing sharks worldwide — a cause that politicians from “both sides of the aisle” have gotten on board with.
Lady Freethinker’s petition to ban the cruel shark fin trade has garnered over 20,000 signatures so far.
SIGN: Ban Cruel Shark Fin Trade in the U.S.
Petition Link – https://ladyfreethinker.org/
SIGN: Justice for Dog Mercilessly Dragged Behind Car, Leaving Mile-Long Trail of Blood
Posted by Katie Valentine
Image Credit: Eyewitness Sergey
13790 Signatures Collected
PETITION TARGETS: Khmelnytskyi Regional Prosecutor’s Office
In a shocking case of animal abuse, a dog named Barsik was tied to a car and dragged along a road, leaving behind a mile-long trail of blood as his battered body scraped against the rough pavement.
Horrified motorists in Ukraine’s Khmelnytskyi region saw Barsik bleeding profusely and pulled over to help. The dog’s paws were skinned to the bone and he endured painful injuries to his stomach and neck. He was so traumatized, he shook for two days, according to the vet who treated him.
At the scene, witnesses encountered Volodymyr Baydych, a high-ranking regional government official. Baydych allegedly said that he was punishing Barsik for biting his mother, and planned to abandon the injured dog in the woods.
Local officials have launched a criminal case against Baydych for the appalling act of cruelty.
Barsik’s abuser must answer for his actions and should not be in a position of public authority. Sign this petition urging the Khmelnytskyi Regional Prosecutor’s Office to pursue this case to the fullest extent of the law and call for a lifelong ban on having any animals.
With great fanfare, the EU and the US settle their controvercy over beef exports.
The Trade Committee of the European Parliament has cleared the way for additional beef imports from the United States.
Members voted 26 to 7 votes in favor of the agreement on Monday, which is expected to apply from 2020.
The message was clear, said committee chairman Bernd Lange: “We would like to de-escalate the trade tensions with the US.”
The EU Commission had already announced in mid-June that parts of the global import quota of 45,000 tonnes of non-hormone-treated beef per annum will be reserved for US providers in the future.
New EU Ambassador to Washington, Stavros Lambrinidis, assessed US-EU trade relations as the “strongest and largest relations in the world”.
US beef exports to the EU will rise 46 percent in the first year, 90 percent over seven years, Trump said. That’s an increase of $ 270 million. Certainly not bad, a game changer for the American beef industry is not.
The US government has already had to launch two rescue packages to help the farmers out of a state of emergency. The mood on the farms is getting worse. The good news for the farmers now gives reason to celebrate.
The rest is shared by exporters such as Australia, Argentina and Uruguay. Technically, such a split violates World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, but the other three nations have announced they will not appeal. This gave Europeans the opportunity to show “goodwill” towards the United States.
“This WTO-compliant agreement respects our high standards of ecology and food safety as well as our economic interests, meaning that tariffs on EU exports are prevented,” said the German Federal Government’s coordinator for transatlantic cooperation, Peter Beyer.
My comment: The German auto industry / the German labor market has prevailed once more. Fearing further customs duties, EU is kneeling in front of Trump!
I do not know if everyone has understood that the substance of the criminal deal is based on Peter Beyer’s statement: “This WTO-compliant agreement respects our high standards of ecology and food safety as well as our economic interests, meaning that tariffs on EU exports are prevente,”!
That means: Dead animals from the USA against cars from the EU.
Was not it weeks ago that the EU wants to declare the climate emergency, or did we misunderstand it?
Already in June 28, 1919, EU has signed the Free Trade Agreement (Mercosur) with the South American bovine barons. The corrupt commissioners cheered:
“EU is likely to face a huge boom, soon will drop inches in the amount of more than 4 billion euros, which opens up enormous opportunities for us.”
With clear words: with low inche, can be cars, car parts, machinery, chemicals … imported from the EU to South America.
For this they provide us with the necessary soya for our livestock, which comes from the primeval forests that have been burned for this purpose.
So … cattle breeding, car industry and meat operation, as well as their transport, complement each other perfectly for climate protection, according to the EU conception?
Or did we get it wrong again?
We feign peace and sell weapons.
We pretend for climate protection and we cover the entire globe (to save the German car industry) with beef.
How many lies, corruption and crime for people and the environment do we want, the EU citizens still tolerate?
When will we finally abolish this criminal dirt club?
My best regards to all, Venus
We fully support the efforts of our Romanian campaigners who took to the streets in Bucharest to speak out for the 14,000+ sheep that lost their lives in the recent incident at Midia.
WHAT DO WE WANT? STOP THE DEATH SHIPS!
WHEN DO WE WANT IT? NOW!
Caring Romanians have united at the country’s agriculture ministry in Bucharest on behalf of the >14,000 sheep who suffered & died when a live export ship capsized last week.
Thank you, Romanian friends — United in defence of innocent animals we stand with you!
World Animals Voice 