Human rights arise solely from belonging to the type of human being.
Human rights are de facto only a privilege of the ruling species, of the humans, which enables us to discriminate against all other animal species.
We are not on the side of the stronger, we fight for the rights of the “other” animals, for those without rights.
Every step that leads to the abolition of animal slavery is a step towards more justice.
Regards and good night, Venus
From Germanwatch.org: Ranking of EU chicken meat companies after contamination with antimicrobial-resistant pathogens
The testing of 165 chicken meat samples from the three largest EU poultry meat companies showed that one in two chicken meat samples is contaminated with antimicrobial-resistant pathogens.
The samples were purchased in five EU countries (DE, ES, FR, NL, PL) from the low-cost range of Lidl, Aldi, and directly from the companies’ factory outlets.
Chickens from the German PHW group are the most contaminated, with a total of 59 percent of contaminated samples, followed by the French LDC group with 57 percent of contaminated samples.
At the Dutch Plukon Food Group, one in three chickens is contaminated with resistant pathogens.
Antibiotic-resistant pathogens are a growing health threat.
If people pick up resistant pathogens during the preparation or consumption of meat, this can lead to serious infections where antibiotics have little or no effect.
On average, one-third of chicken meat samples contain pathogens that are resistant to quinolones.
This group of critically important antimicrobials (CIA HP) is considered by the WHO to be of particular importance with the highest priority for humans.
Uniform EU rules against their routine use in industrial animal husbandry are still lacking.
In the US, quinolones were already banned for chickens for fattening in 2005, and resistance rates in animals have decreased significantly.
The EU Commission is considering reserving the most important groups of antibiotics for humans until the end of 2020 to combat resistance from animal holdings.
The available test results demonstrate the need for an EU-wide ban on CIA HP antibiotics in industrial livestock production.
At the same time, a change in the system of breeding and keeping food-producing animals is necessary, as more animal-friendly procedures can avoid the routine use of antibiotics.
Germanwatch recommends to consumers to avoid cheap chicken and to switch to organic products from smaller, farm-based livestock farms where – if at all – significantly lower resistance rates are found.
Transmission of antibiotic resistance from animals to humans
First picture: Antibiotics are given to factory-farmed chickens
Second picture: Multi-resistant germs develop in the animal body
Third picture: Antibiotic-resistant germs enter the environment.
Fourth picture: … and into the food
Fifth picture: the germs can cause serious infections that antibiotics can hardly help against
Click to access English%20Summary%20%27Chicken%20meat%20tested%27%202020_0.pdf
And I mean… The vegans were always on the carnivore’s line of fire:
“Take care of your food and leave me alone” …
“It is my free choice to eat what I like …”
“It is not healthy to only feed on plants …”
Right from the start, we drew attention to the dangers that come from slaughterhouses and factory farming.
The carnivores were just annoyed.
Now I rub my hands and officially say that it is my free choice to feel divine joy just at the thought that the carnivores may have already eaten these highly dangerous new germs and even with pleasure!!
We expected it.
These are the free citizens, the corpse eaters, the second-hand murderers, those who commissioned the daily massacres in slaughterhouses …
I wish them a lot of fun and a lot of courage for further free elections in our pathogenic democracy.
My best regards to all, Venus
By Nicole Pallotta, Senior Policy Program Manager
Summary: The Islamabad High Court has held that animals have natural rights and are entitled to protection under the Pakistani constitution. The case before the court was threefold, involving an elephant held in solitary confinement at a zoo, a rescued bear who had been forced to “dance” and perform tricks, and the killing of stray dogs. Despite at times anthropocentric framing, the ruling unequivocally recognizes that animals have legal rights and is highly critical of humanity’s treatment of wild animals in particular.
“Do the animals have legal rights?
The answer to this question, without any hesitation, is in the affirmative…. Like humans, animals also have natural rights which ought to be recognized.
It is a right of each animal…to live in an environment that meets the latter’s behavioral, social and physiological needs.”
– Justice Athar Minallah, Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court (p. 59)
In a groundbreaking decision, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan1has recognized that animals have legal rights and are entitled to protection under the nation’s constitution. In a 67-page ruling — dealing mainly with the treatment of an elephant at a zoo — Justice Athar Minallah asked whether animals have legal rights and found, “the answer to this question, without any hesitation, is in the affirmative.”
The ruling contains striking language about the rights of animals. In addition to their physiological needs, Justice Minallah repeatedly references animals’ social and behavioral needs and their right to an environment in which these needs can be met. He is highly critical of zoos that keep wild animals (whom he refers to as “inmates”) in captive conditions that are nothing like their natural habitats, and thus prevent them from engaging in normal behaviors.2
Although the decision — which draws on religious doctrine and quotes extensively from the Quran3 — repeatedly refers to humans as “superior beings,”4 and at times frames animals’ rights in the context of human survival,5 it unequivocally recognizes that animals have natural and legal rights.
In addition, despite its at times anthropocentric framing, the ruling is highly critical of humanity’s treatment of wild animals — e.g., destroying their natural habitat and consigning them to zoos — and refers to humans as an “invasive species.”6
The case before the court combined three separate petitions. The first involved an elephant named Kaavan,7 who was being kept in deplorable conditions at the Marghazar Zoo, and whom petitioners sought to relocate to a sanctuary. The second petition involved a rescued black bear who had been abused and forced to perform tricks.8
The third petition, discussed in least detail, regarded “the killing of stray dogs allegedly in a cruel manner.“
26 people were arrested after locking down this Smithfield* slaughterhouse in LA — as actions happened around the world for #RosesLaw, an Animal Bill of Rights.
*Smithfield Foods, Inc. is the largest pork producer in the USA and is headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia / USA. The company belongs to the Chinese WH Group based in Luohe, Henan / China, which is the largest pig breeding and pork processing group in the world.
Smithfield is proud to operate itself the entire value chain of meat production, i.e. fattening, slaughtering, and further processing into meat products.
The multinational company produces 14 million piglets per year and processes 27 million pigs into various meat products.
In 2006 this was a total of 2.7 million tons of pork and 635,000 tons of fresh beef, which were marketed under brand names such as Smithfield, Butterball, John Morrell, Gwaltney, Patrick Cudahy, Krakus, Cook’s Ham, and Stefano’s.
Smithfield has offices in 26 states and 9 countries, and sales in 44 countries worldwide.
US government agencies have found Smithfield systematically violating workers’ rights (Wikipedia).
Many thanks and respect to the brave activists.
Ma best regards to all, Venus
23/10/20
Press Release
Plans which will mean animal abusers could face up to five years in prison move a step closer.
The Government is backing legislation for tougher prison times for those who cruelly mistreat animals, as plans to introduce more stringent sentences move a step closer today (Friday 23 October 2020).
The Bill, introduced in Parliament by Chris Loder MP in February, will see the most serious perpetrators of animal cruelty face up to five years in prison, up from the current maximum of six months. Today, the Bill will have its Second Reading in the House of Commons, backed by the Government.
These tougher prison sentences would be among the toughest sanctions for animal abuse in Europe, strengthening the UK’s position as a global leader on animal welfare.
The Bill follows a public consultation in 2017, in which more than 70% of people supported the proposals for tougher prison sentences for those guilty of animal cruelty offences. This could include dog fighting, cruelty towards domestic pets or gross neglect of farm animals.
Chris Loder, MP for West Dorset, said:
It is high time as a nation that we take the lead on global standards for animal welfare and hand down tougher custodial sentences for those who inflict the worst kinds of cruelty on innocent animals.
My Bill, which I’m pleased has cross-party support and is fully endorsed by the RSPCA and other animal welfare charities, delivers a strong message to animal abusers that their behaviour will no longer be tolerated. We need to get it on the statute book and send a clear signal to potential offenders there is no place for animal cruelty in this country.
Animal Welfare Minister Lord Goldsmith said:
There is no place for animal cruelty in this country and this crucial piece of legislation will bring in more stringent sentences for animal abusers who commit the most heinous crimes, cementing our role as a global leader in animal welfare.
In addition to supporting this Bill, we are taking steps to ban primates as pets, crack down on the illegal smuggling of dogs and puppies, and we will be making good on our commitment to end excessively long journeys for slaughter and fattening of farm animals.
I would like to thank Chris Loder MP for introducing this vital Bill. We will do all we can to support its swift passage through Parliament.
RSPCA chief executive Chris Sherwood said:
We’re thrilled that The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill has passed through this stage and that we’re one step closer to getting real justice for abused and neglected animals in this country.
In the three years since the Government pledged to increase the maximum sentence under the Animal Welfare Act from six months to five years, immediate custodial sentences have been imposed on 132 individuals following RSPCA investigations into cruelty and these included horrendous cases such as a dog who was kicked to death by her owner and a man who bit off a kitten’s ear.
Tougher sentencing would give courts more flexibility to impose longer prison terms on those people guilty of the most serious offences to better reflect the severity of the crimes and to act as a stronger deterrent to others.
The Second Reading of the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill is due to conclude on 23 October. The Bill will then go to Committee Stage, with Report Stage and Third Reading following this, before transferring to the House of Lords for further scrutiny.
You can track the progress of the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill and read debates on all stages of the Bill’s passage on the Parliament website.
Alternative to animal experiments: new applications for organoids from human intestinal tissue
26 October 2020
Researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have cultured so-called intestinal organoids from human intestinal tissue, which is a common byproduct when performing bowel surgery. These small ‘miniature intestines’ can be used for molecular biological examinations and allow for a direct application of research results to humans, thereby making animal experiments redundant.
The human intestine is vital for both digestion and absorbing nutrients as well as drugs. For any type of research that involves intestines, scientists require research models that reflect the physiological situation inside human beings with the highest possible accuracy.
Standard cell lines and animal experiments have certain disadvantages. One main issue is the lack of applicability of the results to humans. Now, a multidisciplinary research team covering the areas of nutritional science, general medicine, and chemistry has demonstrated how a modern in vitro model — made from human intestinal biopsies — can answer various questions regarding the molecular processes inside the human gut.
“When studying diseases or performing drug screenings, it is critical to have access to a human test system such as human organoids in order to prevent obtaining species specific test results,” said Tamara Zietek, who is part of the Chair of Nutritional Physiology at TUM.
She added that, “over the course of the last few years, organoids have become one of the most promising in vitro models due to their high physiological relevance; they also present a human-based alternative method to animal experiments.”
Read more at source
Dear Mark
It’s been 55 days since the Gulf Livestock 1 capsized with the loss of 41 crew members, including two New Zealanders, and almost 6,000 cows. This tragedy led to the government announcing a temporary ban on live export and yet another review into this cruel and unnecessary trade.
Last month, Agriculture Minister Hon Damien O’Conner gave the okay for New Zealand to resume exports ‘conditionally’ on 24 October despite the risks. Disappointingly, that day has come.
The live export ship, Yangtze Fortune, will dock at Napier port on Tuesday 3 November and plans to take thousands New Zealand cows on a long and stressful sea journey in unnatural conditions. The majority of animals live exported from New Zealand are sent to countries with lower animal welfare standards than our own and sometimes no animal protection laws at all. This means our animals are being farmed and slaughtered in ways that are illegal in here New Zealand.
The only way we can truly help these animals is to get a permanent ban on live animal export. And we need your help.
The Gulf Livestock 1 disaster has highlighted the risks both humans and animals are forced to endure on live export ships. Tens of thousands of Kiwis have called for a ban on this cruel practice and we won’t stop until our Government leaders align the law with our Kiwi values by permanently banning live animal export.
Prime Minster Jacinda Ardern herself has questioned whether the cruel live export trade should be allowed to continue and has highlighted the fact that the trade is problematic, especially where animal welfare and New Zealand’s reputation is concerned.
Take action for animals by writing to the Prime Minster, Jacinda Ardern to echo her concerns about this trade and urge her to ban live animal export permanently.
TAKE ACTION
We know caring people like you want to see an end to live export. And together we will continue to put pressure on our Government until this cruel trade is permanently banned.
Thank you for your support – together we will get a ban on live export.
Debra Ashton
Chief Executive Officer
P.s Join the more than 30,000 people who have already called for a ban on live export from New Zealand. Together, we can stop this cruel trade.
TAKE ACTION
World Animals Voice 