Survey: 62 % of Finns do not approve of killing animals for their fur
21 January 2021
Animalia
Survey: 62 % of Finns do not approve of killing animals for their fur | Eurogroup for Animals
Photo – Jo Anne McArthur
According to a survey by the polling company Taloustutkimus, 62 % of Finns do not approve of killing animals for their fur.
The figure has increased by two percentage points from 2019. The figures show a growing opposition to, and disapproval of, the fur industry in Finland.
Opposition to fur farming has emerged also in other surveys published this Autumn. According to surveys commissioned by NGOs Animalia and Oikeutta eläimille, 76 % of Finns do not accept subsidies to fur farming. 73 % want to either ban farming altogether or think that the law should require considerably more space for the animals and offer better opportunities for the animals’ species-specific behavioural needs.
There has also been a tightening of attitudes towards fur farming in the Finnish Parliament. In August, the Social Democratic Party, which is the party of the Prime Minister, adopted an anti-fur position. The National Coalition Party, currently in the opposition, now calls on the decree on the protection of fur animals to be revised to meet “standards of a civilized state”.
The year 2020 has been catastrophic for fur farming in Europe, with Poland and France deciding on fur farming bans. The Netherlands decided to put an end to mink farming due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Denmark banned mink farming temporarily for the same reason. The Sars-CoV-2 virus has been found on fur farms in many other countries as well, and pressure is increasing for a Europe-wide ban on mink farming.
In Finland, the fur industry has received more than five million euros in subsidies during 2020 and no new restrictions on fur farming are in sight. In 2021, a new animal welfare law as well as a new decree on the protection of fur animals are to be decided on. It is possible to set new restrictions on fur farming through these legislative processes. Fur farming could be prohibited in the animal welfare law, and new restrictions on fur farming could be set in the decree on the protection of fur animals.
Animalia advocates for a ban on fur farming after a phase-out period.
“The problem is that humans have sacrificed animals to such an extent that they are not even considered victims.
They are not taken into account at all.
They are nothing. They don’t count; they don’t matter;
They are goods like televisions and cell phones.
We actually turned animals into inanimate objects – sandwiches and shoes” – Gary Yourofsky
The beneficiaries are six bullfighting associations, which will organize children’s activities such as bullfighting workshops, bullfighting painting contests, and literary contests, even magazine publications, colloquium talks, and even bullfights with death.
Six bullfighting associations are going to receive 44,000 euros from the government of the Region of Murcia to develop dissemination activities and support for bullfighting during 2021.
The activities they will carry out range from a contest for bullfighters without picadors to bullfighting workshops for children, children’s bullfighting painting contests, magazine publications, colloquium talks, or literary contests.
The beneficiaries are the Torre-Pacheco Bullfighting Club Association, the Peña Taurina Yeclana, the Lorca Bullfighting Club, the Cehegín Bullfighting Club, the Murcia Bullfighting Club, and the Calasparra Bullfighting Club.
The objective of this measure is to increase the dissemination of bullfighting, promote it and bring it closer to society through different actions of both a recreational and cultural nature.
Francisco Abril
The Director-General of Local Administration, Francisco Abril, stressed that “currently there are certain sectors opposed to the visibility and dissemination of bullfighting as what it has always been: a fundamental expression of the traditional culture of the Spanish people. That is why it was essential to start these grants, to promote the sector and increase knowledge about the festival, especially among young people ”.
From AnimaNaturaliswe believe that it is a scandal that in the midst of a pandemic and economic crisis due to Covid19, a government decides to allocate public money to the promotion of an activity that the majority of Spaniards reject, and also neighbors of Murcia.
And I mean…Public money again for the indoctrination of Spanish children into the torture of defenseless animals…
Bullfighting and bull festivals violate any ethics of modern civilized countries and societies and value a “culture” of primitive people
Education and the future of Spanish children are not worth a cent in and for Spain.
One notices that every single day.
As the Pisa study shows, in terms of education, Spain is at the bottom of the list in Europe, which is also noticeable in the fact that traditions from the Middle Ages are followed with enthusiasm.
One must be very primitive to be able to believe that in modern Europe one can get away with this kind of cruelty to animals in the long term.
Time is ticking for the animals and we know it will end.
Questionnaires are available in some or all official EU languages. You can submit your responses in any official EU language.
For reasons of transparency, organisations and businesses taking part in public consultations are asked to register in the EU’s Transparency Register.
Overview:
As part of the Better Regulation Evaluation of the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive (SUD) and the impact assessment of its planned revision, DG SANTE launched, on 18 January 2021, an online public consultation asking stakeholders and members of the public to have their say on the sustainable use of pesticides.
This online consultation will remain open for responses until 12 April 2021
Stakeholders are being consulted on the achievements of the SUD, implementation, enforcement and application problems and their underlying causes and on possible ways forward and their impacts. The consultation aims to provide the stakeholders involved in the application of the SUD and the wider public with the opportunity to share their experiences. It allows respondents to express their views on possible ways to make the Directive work more efficiently or better achieve its objectives.
The SUD aims to achieve a sustainable use of pesticides in the EU by reducing the risks and impacts of pesticide use on human health and the environment and promoting the use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and of alternative approaches or techniques, such as non-chemical alternatives to pesticides.
Like dogs: The company initially wants employee collars for corona distance protection in France!
The Beatles’ line of the song “And I’ve been working like a dog” takes on a whole new meaning: A Swedish company wants to equip its French employees with a band that triggers an alarm if they are too close to another employee.
For the time being, however, only the Confédération française démocratique du travail (CFDT) trade union, which wants to take action against the planned measure, is alarmed. Essity is a publicly-traded manufacturer of tissue paper. The group’s headquarters are in Stockholm.
In Germany, Essity Germany has plants in Mannheim, Mainz-Kostheim, Neuss, Witzenhausen, and Ismaning, which is also the company’s German headquarters.
The AFP news agency reported on January 13th about the company’s plans for its approximately 2,500 French employees. The CFDT union, however, is outraged.
The collar is comparable to the straps that “are supposed to keep dogs from barking,” the union said in a statement.
Specifically, the company’s management had suggested using tapes that would trigger an alarm if they were too close to another employee.
This band can be worn either around the neck or around the waist, as the French daily “Le Monde” reported.
According to the CFDT, the collars would emit a sound of 85 decibels as soon as the social distance is no longer maintained.
“It’s about disciplining the employees and calling them to order,” denounced CFDT union delegate Christine Duguet, who also emphasized that there was no contamination between the employees at Essity.
The union also speaks of an “attack on individual freedoms” that employees would not accept. “[These tapes] will end up in the trash cans or in the lockers, that’s nonsense,” warned Duguet.
The management defended the project. One wants to “strengthen the security of the employees”(!!!)
“This device does not contain a geolocation system and is not associated with any personal information,” said Essity.
It is also inactive in the sanitary facilities, in the company restaurant, or in the hospital ward. It could help to react faster.
The plan is to introduce the utensil at several of the Group’s European locations.
A social and economic committee (CSE) will meet next week, where the management has to specify their project, explained CFDT.
And I mean…Hopefully, our Minister of Health Spahn won’t read RT-online, that’s my only comment on it.
But I would like to add another comment, which I find very good, on this subject:
I am not surprised. The overwhelming majority of the people keep their mouths shut and keep a mask in front of the mask. Two are better than one. It can be locked up at will. Nobody takes the few resistance people seriously anyway. And the men and women continue to test the expansion of their measures. As Jean-Claude Junker once said a few years ago publicly in the press: “We are putting the people to the test with our measures. We see how far we can go to make appropriate adjustments next time.”
Oops. Who cares, freedom, peace, joy, etc. These are all myths from the distant past, if at all.
Humans have always been predestined for slavery. To this day, history is teeming with slavery. Freedom is something for wimps, they just talk and just can’t adapt. Peace, order, and conformity with the state, these are the primary duties of the citizen.
photo of the Sydney Fish Market. The Australian Marine Conservation Society aims to make people more aware of the need for shark conservation. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP
Australian seafood consumers urged to stop buying flake to protect sharks
A new campaign highlights there is no legal obligation to label flake – a common term for shark meat – by species or where it’s from
Australian consumers will be encouraged not to purchase flake when they shop for seafood and to instead try sustainable alternatives in a new campaign that aims to put a spotlight on laws that permit the harvest of endangered sharks.
The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) is asking consumers to “give flake a break” because there is no legal obligation in Australia for retailers to label flake – a common term used for shark meat – by its species or where it’s from.
Guardian Australia reported last year that a loophole in Australia’s national environmental laws allows for the continued commercial harvest of endangered sharks such as the school shark or hammerhead, meaning their meat can be routinely sold in shops, restaurants or exported overseas.
Leonardo Guida, a shark scientist with the AMCS, said the organisation was launching its campaign to try to make consumers more aware of the need for shark conservation.
He said sustainable alternatives to flake included King George whiting, farmed barramundi, mullet, wild caught Australian salmon and luderick.
Research by the AMCS found there was an average $2 difference between these options and the cost of flake. In some cases the sustainable alternatives were cheaper.
“Australia legally permits the harvest of endangered sharks, which can end up on people’s plates and they wouldn’t even know it because it’s often called flake,” Guida said.
“There’s no legal requirement to call a shark for what it is.”
Guida said the system was broken “somewhere between the boat and the plate” because fishers routinely recorded what species they caught but by the time the meat ended up with a consumer that information could be lost or difficult to obtain.
Guida surveyed 10 fish and chips shops in each state and territory and found less than a third of the shark meat on sale referred to a specific species.
He said promisingly, however, at least 40% of retailers offered a sustainable alternative.
Consumers can use GoodFish, a website and app developed by AMCS, to research sustainable seafood options, or ask their fishmonger or retailer.
The loophole in Australia’s environment laws applies to certain marine species that are given a special status known as “conservation dependent” that allows for their continued commercial harvest.
Under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, marine species that are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered are classified as “no take” species, meaning they cannot be sold or exported.
But the eight marine species listed as conservation dependent – including the blue warehou, eastern gemfish, the scalloped hammerhead and the school shark – do not receive this protection.
Marine conservationists have long argued for the removal of this category from Australia’s national environment laws where it applies to threatened species but its existence continues to fly beneath the radar of most seafood consumers.
During last year’s review of the EPBC Act, led by the former competition watchdog head Graeme Samuel, the AMCS called for the species listed as conservation dependent to be given the threatened status they were eligible for.
The Humane Society International is the main organisation in Australia that nominates species for a listing under national environmental laws. It put forward several of the marine animals that were ultimately listed as conservation dependent.
One of those was the scalloped hammerhead, which qualified for an endangered listing but was given a conservation dependent status in 2018 after a six-year effort by the HSI to have it listed for protection.
“What we ask is that species be put in their rightful category because species that are endangered or critically endangered should be listed as that and protected from commercial utilisation,” said Nicola Beynon, the HSI’s Australian head of campaigns.
Samuel’s interim report, handed down last July, found Australia’s environment was in unsustainable decline. The report made several recommendations, but none in relation to the conservation dependent category.
He delivered his final report to the Morrison government at the end of October last year but it has not yet been released. The government is required to release the report sometime in February.
A spokesperson for the environment minister, Sussan Ley, would not say when the government planned to release the report but it would be within the statutory timeframe.
The spokesman said sharks were listed as conservation dependent based on advice from the threatened species scientific committee.
“Species listed as conservation dependent are subject to a scientifically determined and annually reviewed rebuilding strategy,” the spokesperson said.
In a submission to the Samuel review last year, the scientific committee said the conservation dependent category needed urgent reform and this was partly because it masked the actual conservation status of species.
Austrian public broadcaster sheds light on live transport at prime time
18 January 2021
Four Paws
Cattle crammed into trucks, brutally loaded onto ships, slaughtered while fully conscious – disturbing images of animals being transported to the Middle East, including those of Austrian cattle in Lebanon, as well as interviews with Eurogroup for Animals’ members Four Paws and Animals International are featured in a new documentary which was broadcasted at prime time on Austrian television.
The documentary feature called “Animal transports – cheap meat at any price?” took a critical look at this much-discussed topic last Wednesday, 13 January 2021. The documentary looks at the crucial questions of how and why these animals from Austria are transported thousands of kilometres, also addressing the crux of why domestic calves are exported at all, while most of the veal for Austrian gastronomy is imported. In the past, these questions have triggered not only a public but also a political debate in Austria.
Every year about 45,000 calves are exported from Austria to countries such as Italy or Spain, while about 100,000 animals are imported to Austria to end up on the plates of local restaurants.
In Vienna, 60 per cent of the Wiener Schnitzel consists of imported veal. Most of it comes from the Netherlands and is produced under conditions that would not be permitted in Austria. This, however, is not comprehensible to the consumer as most menus are not transparent. A schnitzel from Austrian veal would cost 50 cents more, and 20 cents more for pork.
Target: Gizat Nurdauletov, Kazakhstan Prosecutor General
Goal: Give person who reportedly dragged dog behind moving car the toughest sentence punishable by law.
A dog was allegedly tied to the back of a car and forcibly dragged as its driver sped down the road. Kazakhstan police have not named the suspect involved. However, he was detained and is now being questioned by authorities. This person needs to be put behind bars for the maximum amount of time if it is found he committed this unthinkable act of animal cruelty.
Video footage appears to show the dog being dragged behind a moving car with a trail of blood following his injured body. A witness told police that they honked their horn until the driver finally stopped. After the witness asked the motorist why they were mistreating the animal, he allegedly picked up the dog and threw the animal inside his boot before leaving the scene.
The dog was swiftly taken to a veterinary clinic to receive treatment after the suspect was detained. The animal reportedly needs to take pain killers to sustain any quality of life. Sign this petition to demand the person allegedly responsible for this blatant act of animal cruelty be given the longest prison sentence possible.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Prosecutor General Nurdauletov,
An unnamed suspect was recently detained for tying a dog to the back of his car and then speeding down the road, dragging the helpless animal behind him. He needs to be given the strictest sentence under the law if it is found he committed this horrific crime.
The alleged incident was captured on dash camera. The driver was allegedly going so fast that it would have been impossible for the animal to run behind the car. Instead, the poor dog was dragged and badly injured. Witnesses described a trail of blood left in his wake.
The dog fortunately lived and was treated for his injuries. However, the wounds were reportedly so bad that the dog will experience prolonged pain and suffering. We therefore demand you suggest the person allegedly responsible receive the most stringent sentence allowed by law if it is found he committed this heartless act of animal abuse.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
SIGN: JUSTICE FOR DOLPHIN BEATEN TO DEATH WITH AXES AND STICKS
PETITION TARGET: Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar
India’s Ganges River turned red with blood as a group of attackers beat a critically endangered and protected Gangetic dolphin to death with wooden rods and an axe.
Disturbing video footage captured by a witness shows one of the men yelling, “Hit it now, hit it now” and the attackers then holding the dolphin’s head underwater until he drowned. A local official later found the dolphin floating dead, with multiple lacerations and other wounds to its body, The Guardian reported.
The highly threatened Gangetic dolphin population is now an estimated 1,800 or less, and they are moving alarmingly closer to extinction.
Police in Uttar Pradesh arrested three suspects in connection with this horrifying act of cruelty. Several others who may have been involved in the senseless killing are reportedly still free.
Anyone who assisted in bludgeoning and suffocating this defenseless dolphin must answer for their actions.
Sign this petition urging Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar to push authorities to thoroughly investigate this appalling crime, use all available resources to find and charge any yet-unidentified suspects, and prosecute all perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law.
Despite the fact that dog and cat meat consumption is an everyday occurrence and is being carried out all over South Korea, it is NOT LEGAL in that country. Their Government does nothing to stop this illegal practice and they seem happy to ignore it; many Korean citizens are just as apathetic and must also be held accountable.
This is the 21st Century, and it is high time that all South Koreans, leaders and general public alike, stand up and take responsibility to enforce their own country’s laws. South Korea and South Koreans cannot continue to ignore these brutal and unethical trades, so let us campaign to urge each of South Korea’s cities to enforce their laws and to put an immediate end to these illegal dog and cat meat trades.
We are in regular contact with Erika at AAU; and are always amazed at the work that is done by the AAU crew to help suffering animals. Here are a few of the latest videos that have been sent to us. We wish them growing success, and may all their fantastic work continue – one day soon it will be across ALL India !
Regards Mark
You’ve probably heard the song that goes, “What the world, needs now, is love sweet love”? It was written in the 1960s but it’s certainly still true. While the world battles the pandemic and plenty of political chaos, the animals here have, every moment, reminded us that the most enduring, stabilizing and beautiful fact is that love works. It supports, soothes, heals and energizes all of us.
No surprise that chickens, too, thrive with love, when it is expressed as a safe place, plentiful food, fresh air, and friends. Happy New Year from our rescued rooster Rockstar, who joins us all in thanking you for your love, sweet love, which the world needs now, and which you give us every day.
Butterfly’s eyes seem to speak as her healing begins.
Someone noticed a donkey in a field whosebone was exposed from a devastating friction wound, made worse by maggots. Our rescuers found that she flinched when approached, telling us that she didn’t trust people.During her first treatment, she lay perfectly still, her expression fearful and defeated.
Her eyes conveyed so much, it is hard to summarize in just a word. They held anguish, resignation, fatigue. But they also radiated kindness, announcing her profound sweetness. As soon as we eased her pain with medicine, stabilizing bandages and a splint, her glow of life brightened–you could just see it. Watch this girl, so inward and dejected at the start, unfurl her beautiful wings and beam with life as she heals.
We call her Butterfly. You’ll see why. Please donate
2020 was also a beautiful year!
Watch this short video about the GOODyou helped achieve
Every loving moment we shared with animals in 2020 refreshed our hearts and gave us so much strength. The animals awakened our humor, and filled us with energy to do our best each day. Even though the pandemic made it a difficult year, the animals and your extraordinary help through thick and thin, kept us going strong.
A paralysed dog growled and barked,but patience brought the sweetest reward.
We don’t know what caused this sweetheart’s injury.His spine was hurt and he could not stand. His legs were limp, and someone had loosely tied them together; we don’t know why. It seemed he had a story to tell. At first, rigid with pain, he merely endured his initial assessment, but ate with so much relaxed enthusiasm that we named him Comfy.
Some time later, though, feeling a bit better, he let us know that perhaps we had named him “Comfy” too soon. He told us we were not welcome to touch him. He growled. He barked. And he kept it up for a while. We knew that without physiotherapy he might never walk again, but how could we manage it if he wouldn’t let us touch him?
Watch Comfy’s transition from paralysed and frustrated to becoming fully mobile, happy and finally…a comfy bundle of love.
Spotlight on the teamOne of the gems in our midst is Deepak Nath.
He joined the team as a care-giver a year ago and doesn’t pass by an animal without giving a cuddle. You know someone is incredibly special when on their days off from work they bring injured animals they’ve found to Animal Aid for treatment.
One of the gems in our midst is Deepak Nath. He joined the team as a care-giver a year ago and doesn’t pass by an animal without giving a cuddle.
You know someone is incredibly special when on their days off from work they bring injured animals they’ve found to Animal Aid for treatment
Most of the people we hire for the role of care-giver have never before worked with animals.
While this can pose a challenge for us it also gives us hope when we see how people from all different backgrounds can take on animal protection as a way of life. Click here for latest positions from Emergency Call Attendant to Veterinary Doctor for residents of India.
Francisco Abril
World Animals Voice 