END CRUEL AND ILLEGAL EU LIVE ANIMAL EXPORTS
Posted by Libby Kann

Petition Link – https://ladyfreethinker.org/sign-end-cruel-and-illegal-eu-live-animal-exports/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email

PETITION TARGET: European Parliament President Antonio Tajani

Each year, more than three million animals from the EU are forced to endure the horrific journey of live animal export, matted and suffocating in their own faeces for weeks, to then be gruesomely slaughtered in countries with little to no animal welfare laws including the Middle East, North Africa, and Singapore.

The EU must end this cruel practice; and shockingly, they’ve already banned it — they just blatantly ignore the law.

In an appalling display of complete disregard for animal protection and public trust, the EU has consistently violated this law for nearly 15 years.

In fact, the EU banned live animal exports in 2005 to countries that do not meet European animal welfare standards for handling, transport, and slaughter. But the law is largely brushed aside. The European Parliament has discussed finally enforcing it, first in 2012 and again in 2019. However, some members are still voting against the enforcement of laws protecting animals from the gruesome live export trade.

The situation is so dire, “Not one of the importing countries currently taking animals from Europe meets the EU’s standards for animal welfare,” according to Animals Australia.

Image Source: Wikimedia/Roee Shprenick

Photographer Roee Shprenick stated, “Calves for meat from Portugal arrived at Ashdod port in Israel after being stuck at sea for 26 days, covered in feces and some blinded by the ammonia fumes.”

This inhumane and illegal suffering must end.
Sign this petition to urge the European Parliament to finally enforce their own laws and end cruel live animal exports.

See More:

https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/05/06/eu-meps-have-their-say-in-the-hundreds-but-in-the-end-if-commissioner-says-no-then-no-it-is/

https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/05/05/the-cruelty-transport-of-unweaned-calves-direct-from-ireland-to-france-and-from-scotland-via-ramsgate-england-for-further-fattening-in-spain/

https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/05/05/serbia-an-eu-candidate-country-and-they-do-this/

The following is produced in relation to the EU elections which will take place on 23-26 May 2019. They are for Members of the European Parliament (MEP), not for the Commissioners, who are not elected by the democratic system. The government of each member state of the EU nominates a member for the Commission, but cannot later give them any orders or remove them from their post. The members of the Commission are supposedly positioned to act in the interest of the European Union as a whole, and not their home country.

Thus, electing MEP’s with your vote in May really does not change anything. MEP’s have NO power to remove a Commissioner – and the Commissioner is ultimately the SINGLE person who has the FINAL SAY regardless of decisions and votes taken in the European Parliament.

So is there any point in ‘EU man and woman’ really having a vote when the EU system works like this ? – we see it simply as a veil for the EU establishment to give the EU citizen he is making a difference, when the reality is the decisions are made by the Commissioners who are un elected and cannot be removed ! – a fair system ? – what do you think ?

So the EU Parliament of hundreds of members can vote for animal transport times to be reduced; but if the Commissioner says NO, then No it is.

Remember this when you are asked to give your vote at the EU elections in May. Does your vote for MEP’s only really mean anything ? – we suggest you ask the sole decision making Commissioners.

—————————————————

Every year millions of animals are transported live from the EU for slaughter in the Middle East and North Africa. The journeys last hundreds of hours and they face brutal treatment on arrival at their final destination.

Every year, over three million animals are exported from the European Union to NON-EU countries. Hundreds of thousands are destined for countries such as Russia, Turkey, The Middle East and North Africa. Investigations have uncovered animals being exported live for brutal slaughter in countries across the Middle East, and even as far away as Singapore.

Despite these countries having no laws that protect animals from brutal treatment, and though the European Commission and livestock exporting Member States have long been made fully aware of the extreme cruelty such animals are being subjected to, both have been actively seeking to increase the export of EU animals.

In 2015 the European livestock export value increased 25,2% compared to 2014, and increased further in 2016. In the first nine months of 2016 EU export of live animals increased to 17,2 % in comparison to the same period in 2015.

A 5 year study carried out between 2010-2015 by Eyes on Animals and TSB/AWF demonstrated 70% of live export trucks inspected at the (EU) Bulgarian border (a major exit point for EU animals) were breaching the EU Transport Regulation. The team found animals, such as sheep, starving, without water, parked in direct sunlight, and waiting 5 days before continuing their journey. Packed tightly together, young lambs were trampled to death while the elders were left standing on their carcasses.

These horrifically long journeys must be stopped once and for all and replaced by a trade in frozen or refrigerated meat. When European animals are exported outside of the EU, they can suffer squalid housing, brutal handling, torturous restraint systems, and slow, painful slaughter. But we have shown with investigations for many years that animals being transported within the EU also suffer terribly.

Barbaric slaughtering methods.

Investigations continually provide evidence that the slaughtering of animals being sold from the EU to Third Countries is barbaric. The footage captured on the slaughtering routines these importing countries are using are in full breach of international standards. Such routines include terrifying fully conscious very large bulls by painfully dragging them up off the floor by one of their rear legs, and slashing their throat several times before they die in Turkish slaughterhouses.

Similar footage shows partial hoisting of fully conscious cattle in Lebanese slaughterhouses and their torture with electric prods before their throats are slashed. There is evidence as well of petrified European animals being brutally restrained by ropes before having their throats hacked whilst fully conscious in the Palestinian territories and Egypt. Furthermore, the extended suffering of European animals has been caught on camera showing how full inversion slaughter boxes are used in Turkey, Ramallah and Egypt. In addition, the brutal handling and slaughtering of Portuguese and Romanian sheep was documented in the Palestinian territories and Jordan.

Under EU Regulation 1/2005, animals are being exported by European countries to Non EU nations without any consideration as to whether the importing countries’ infrastructure, handling and slaughter practices comply with basic international standards. Even if the majority of abattoirs in importing countries have no capacity or understanding to handle or slaughter animals humanely, no EU regulation ought to allow the animal cruelty that is occurring. Further still, the fact that so many importing countries lack even the most basic hygiene protocols means the resulting meat is in fact unfit for human consumption in the EU.

Some MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) are in favour of improving conditions for animals in transport and have voted to impose an overall limit on journey times. In its last sitting the European Parliament voted in favour of a limit to journey times, but the European Commission failed to support this change, resulting in no change in the law.

So, we can say with confidence that the European Commission is failing all animals that are transported both within, and to nations outside of the European Union.

The EU Commissioner responsible for failures is one:

Philp Hogan (born 4 July 1960) an Irish Fine Gael politician, and climate change sceptic, who has served as European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development since November 2014. Can a Commissioner be removed by the EU ? – No. The government of each member state (in this case Ireland) nominates a member for the Commission, but cannot later give them any orders or remove them from their post. The members of the Commission are to act in the interest of the European Union as a whole, not their home country. We question this as Ireland has recently been setting up live export deals with non-EU destinations such as: Lebanon; Morocco; Russia; Rwanda and Tunisia.

https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/analysis-the-irish-live-cattle-export-market-in-2018/

Ireland exported 246,000 live animals in 2018, according to the IFA. The majority were calves and weanlings going to Spain and the Netherlands. The IFA wants to double live export numbers in 2019, and gain more access to markets in Turkey and North Africa.

The question is – has Commissioner Hogan been a voice for the Irish agriculture industry rather than addressing issues within the EU such as live animal transport ?

A Commissioner’s basic monthly salary is fixed at 112.5% of the top civil service grade. This works out at €22,367.04 per month.

In 2015 the Court of Justice judged – Zuchtvieh arrest – that the Transport Regulation 1/2005’s provisions not only apply to the EU but rather to the entire journey of transporting European animals outside the EU until their final destination, still in Third countries there are not facilities to unload, feed, water, rest animals and to provide them with basic care. And yet the trade continues and so does the suffering, in complete disregard of the highest Court’s Jurisprudence.

Within Europe, animals are SUPPOSED to be protected by EU Regulation 1/2005, – ‘the protection of live animals during transport and related operations’; but live animals in transport are routinely failed by this legislation.

The way in which the trade of live animals is currently carried out in the EU is in clear breach of Article 13 of the Treaty on the Function of the EU (TFEU), which is a requirement to “pay full regard to” animal welfare in formulating and implementing EU agriculture policy. In addition, by facilitating and supplying live EU animals to countries that are consistently failing to meet standards of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) – the EU Commission is undermining the work of the OIE to improve animal welfare standards. Compliance with OIE standards is intended to form the basis of trade agreements between countries.

The following video allows you to see just what happens to the tiny calves exported by Cassidy and McCreery from Ewing’s staging post at Dunbretton farm, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, via Ramsgate (England) on the Export ship ‘Joline’ (2 pictures below) owned and operated by J. Onderwater the Dutchman.  It also shows Irish calves exported directly from Ireland via Sea Link ferries to Cherbourg in France.

Yet another ‘animal issue’ that the EU wants to wipe it hands of.

EU elections 23-26 May 2019.  Are they worth it ? — NO.

Following on from the terrible news today about the death of Eco Warrior Polly Higgins https://worldanimalsvoice.com/2019/04/25/eco-warrior-polly-higgins-has-died/ – I want to share a tribute to a personal friend and fellow live export campaigner.

Read the tribute from CIWF, London:

https://www.ciwf.org.uk/news/2019/04/john-callaghan-a-leader-in-the-fight-for-animal-welfare

We are deeply saddened to share the tragic news that our friend and former staff member, John Callaghan has passed away.

John served throughout much of the 1990s as our Education Director and produced some excellent educational books on farm animal welfare. But, like all our senior staff, he played a major campaigning role during the mid-nineties when the live animal export protests were at their height.

Shoreham became a key export location when exports were banned at Dover and John became known as ‘Mr Shoreham’.  He was regularly down at the dockside, leading the protests with energy and passion. One of our major supporters wrote to us recently saying:

“John was the loveliest person and an inspiration to me and many others. It was his wonderful self-deprecating humour that drew us in to the whole animal welfare world when we met him at Shoreham all those years ago.”

A wonderful communicator, he shared his expertise and love of animal welfare both via the media and by inspiring many people to support the fight for a better life for animals.

After a stint working for World Animal Protection, John returned to us in early 2007 as Director of Programmes and Deputy CEO and we welcomed back his commitment and experience. He left in 2010 and moved back to Somerset to be near to his family.

Those of us who worked with him will always remember his dedication, his gentle heart and wonderful humour.

—————————————————–

I (Mark) had the immense pleasure of knowing John for many years. I did some work with him in the Netherlands in the mid 90’s when we took the CIWF exhibition truck all over the NL on the issue of intensive farming and live calf exports. As British calves were being exported to the NL at the time; we took some time out of our schedule to ‘sniff around’ and find out a little more about places they were being sent to.

John often used to hitch a ride in my car which I had taken to the Netherlands as part of the job. We shared many hours on the road; laughing, talking and generally trying to have a good time in work that we both knew the live animal export business caused immense suffering to – innocent, sentient beings.

As the CIWF tribute above says, I will always remember John as the most kind, humorous guy you could ever wish to meet – his dedication to animal welfare was 110%.

As Venus says with her post on Polly Higgins;

Why do the good, useful and hopeful people go out of the life so early?
And the assholes, the torturers, the criminals live long and have so much time to destroy life and nature?
This is an injustice that we experience more often and that offends us deeply.

True, very true. John also went far too early. I knew his son (John Jnr) also; and my condolences go out to him at this sad time.

RIP John- and thank you for all you did to improve the lives of all animals.

Regards Mark.

Here is a photo of John (man in the middle) I took many years ago at the EU in Brussels – a live export demo of all things – veal calves and veal crates !

… and (below); me in the Netherlands with the CIWF Tour Truck covering all aspects of intensive farming.  Note free range chickens !

Venus was asking a bit more about Jill and Coventry airport protests today – here I will let the newspapers talk about it – Mark.

Did you wonder why I / we in the UK anti live export groups have such a thing about the death of our beloved Jill (Phipps) ?

Well, below is the reason. The ‘businessman’ behind the export of live calves where Jill was crushed to death by an export truck, was very soon afterwards found to be smuggling £22 million worth of Cocaine into the UK via Southend airport which is near to London, in Essex.

He was given a 20 year jail sentence for this. Some small justice for the murder of our Jill, but he should have rotted in jail to this very day; we don’t need scum like this around; especially when they export live animals like the calves; and kill decent young people like our Jill. This is the kind that are involved in the live animal export trade. ‘Businessman’ ? – No; we can think of much better realistic descriptions for him.

Read on to find out more about the calf exporting, Coke smuggling ‘businessman’.

I hope he rots in a dark place;

For Jill xx;

Regards Mark.

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/coventry-news-plane-crash-1994-12346964

Twenty-four years ago, five crew members died when a Boeing 737 crashed in thick fog as it made its final approach to Coventry Airport.

At just before 10am on Wednesday, December 21, 1994, the cargo plane collided with an electricity pylon about a mile from the runway.

The impact damaged the left engine and wing and the aircraft rolled to the left and dropped, clipping a house on the Willenhall housing estate before crashing into woodland near Middle Ride and catching fire.

Miraculously no-one on the ground was killed, but all five air crew perished, making it the city’s worst air disaster.

The Air Algerie plane had been chartered by Phoenix Aviation – headed by Christopher Barrett-Jolley – to carry veal calves to the continent.

A coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death, while air accident investigators said pilot error and tiredness were factors in the crash.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2002/dec/06/theairlineindustry.drugs

A businessman once at the centre of protests because of his export of live calves was today beginning a 20-year jail sentence after being convicted of plotting to smuggle £22m worth of cocaine into the UK.

Pilot Christopher Barrett-Jolley, 55, of Wellington, Somerset, was at the controls of a Boeing 707 freight airliner that flew from the West Indies to Southend, Essex, in October 2001 carrying six suitcases packed with more than 270kg (nearly 600lb) of cocaine, Basildon crown court heard.

Barrett-Jolley came to attention a decade ago over the export of live animals to the continent. He was the head of a firm called Phoenix Aviation which ran a veal export business from Baginton airport, near Coventry, Warwickshire.

In 1994 five people died when a returning veal flight crashed into a wood as it approached the airport.

A year later animal rights activist Jill Phipps, 31, was crushed to death by a lorry at one of the protests against the trade. Phoenix Aviation’s trade was criticised by leading church figures. The company went out of business in 1995.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-150358/Cocaine-smuggling-businessman-jailed.html

Cocaine smuggling businessman jailed

A businessman at the centre of protests because of his export of live calves was today beginning a 20-year jail sentence after being convicted of plotting to smuggle £22 million worth of cocaine into the UK.

Pilot Christopher Barrett-Jolley, 55, of Wellington, Somerset, was at the controls of a Boeing 707 freight airliner which flew from the West Indies to Southend, Essex, in October 2001 carrying six suitcases packed with more than 270kg (nearly 600lb) of cocaine, Basildon Crown Court heard.

Barrett-Jolley’s brother-in-law and co-pilot, Peter Carine, 50, of Hensall, North Yorkshire, was also jailed for 20 years.

I have been doing a major clear out of gear in my loft today in order to prepare for a house move. I came across endless stacks of animal rights data that I have had in storage for years – campaign material for when we hit the streets.

I uncovered some old live export data which I have stored, for this very day I guess; to bring back memories of what we did in the past. Below is the front page of ‘Dover Moos’ – a newsletter thrown together by the Dover AR movement which largely hinged around the exports campaign.

Note this is for 4^th September 1995. It starts with ‘the week that was’ – and as you can see, 150+ live animals transporters passed through Dover harbour in just that one week. Multiply that by 4 and you get a rough guesstimate of the monthly tally – say 600 transporters; maybe more, maybe less; but typical of the situation in 1995; 400 animals per transporter – that makes roughly 250,000 live animals going to their deaths each month – that was the export trade out of Dover, the South East of England.

Sheep were being exported en masse from places such as Wales – they were going to mainland EU for slaughter; but at certain times of the year, these sheep were also being exported to the killing fields of France at the time of Muslim ‘Eid’. France has a large Muslim population. British sheep were driven by truck down to the killing fields where they were unloaded and immediately laid over rough iron frameworks which were above trenches which had been dug in advance into the fields.

As you can see in the picture; the sheep were laid and waited their turn to have their throats cut without any form of pre-stunning. The same throat cut procedure happens to this very day with ‘Eid’; there is no advanced stunning of the animals before they are slaughtered. Every campaigner a Dover dreaded the Eid killing fields time as they all knew what it meant for exported British sheep.

We also had calf exports. You could hear the calves bellowing before the trucks arrived – mere male babies deprived of their mothers milk; being exported to the Netherlands and France mainly for further fattening and veal production. In the UK, we had forced the government to ban veal crates here on cruelty grounds – and yet despite the ban in the UK; we were still allowing live calves to be exported abroad to the very same systems that were considered ‘cruel’ here ! In the following 2 photos you can see British calves in the European crate systems; and also being held in the head lock device to ‘get them more used to how to live in the crate’.

Like all live animal exports, it bummed me off then, just as it still bums me off now; it always will. So this is why I was proud to be an animal advocate against the live trade going out of Dover, and other ports in SE England. We united, we stuck with it and we became a very well organised and potent force.

Today at Dover; 2019; there are NO live animal transporters going out through the port. The trade was closed down over time by well organised and dedicated folk who wanted to be a voice for the calves, sheep and pigs which were being exported. If things are bad, then there may be 1 shipment going out of Ramsgate port each week; taking a maximum of 6 trucks on the sailing. That is still one shipment a week too many; but look back to 95 when it was 150+ each week. In my book, that is quite a result. Masses of people still protest at every Ramsgate shipment; and they always will until the trade is stopped there as well.

So the aim of this story is one of never giving up. In another way, it is of mothers losing their babies – Nancy lost her baby Jill in the calf protests, dairy cows losing their calf babies.

Jill and mum Nancy

Your campaign can take many years to bring success; but with planning; dedicated people and the want to be a voice for animals; a victory will come your way.

And the veal calves – why I have personally never touched diary milk for decades; cows milk is for baby cows, not us.

Regards Mark.

      BIG NEWS: A promise to strengthen laws for dairy cows

In the lead-up to the Federal Election being called, Labor has committed to rectifying the double-standard in Australia’s live export laws that makes exporters legally accountable for the treatment of one group of animals, but leaves thousands of ‘breeder’ and ‘dairy’ cows — arguably, the most vulnerable — utterly exposed.

Mark, images of sick and dying dairy cows exported by Australia’s live export industry have shocked us all. Since I wrote to you, thousands of people have called on the government to close the loophole that, for too long, has excluded these vulnerable animals from basic protections under live export laws.

We had to ensure this appalling situation was a catalyst for change. And it’s close to being just that.

Labor’s commitment could be game-changing for so many animals. It could not only prevent a repeat of the suffering unfolding right now in Sri Lanka, but the additional layer of accountability on exporters could also impact the viability of sending these animals overseas in the first place.

Mark, if yours was one of the thousands of emails that helped catapult this issue onto the political agenda — thank you. We hope the government matches this commitment.

I appreciate that when it comes to political lobbying especially, you may wonder if your ongoing — and often repeated — actions are making a difference. Progress like this is proof that they are 🙂

I can definitively say, after 20 years in this field, that if there is one thing that pays off for animals — it is persistence. We are so close to major outcomes now, because every time we are told ‘no’, we hear ‘try harder’. And because we do — and because you stay with us — animals have hope, like never before.

For the animals,

Lyn White AM
Investigations Director

P.S. Labor’s pre-election commitment is fantastic, but obviously the situation for the animals right now in Sri Lanka is still dire. Our expert has just arrived and is already providing much needed assistance. We’ll keep you informed of any developments.

Mark, we bring you the sad news that today, we’ve learned of the latest in a long line of repeated failures by the live export industry.

Once again, live exporters have proven they cannot be trusted to protect Australian animals overseas.
An ABC investigation has today revealed horrific footage of starving, sick, dead and dying dairy cattle exported to Sri Lanka.

These cows were exported under the promise of good health and long lives as breeding stock for Sri Lankan farmers.

Instead, local farmers have been devastated to receive cattle unprepared for the local climate, susceptible to disease, with many facing terrible suffering and a slow, painful death.

The live export industry has failed these animals, failed Australian and Sri Lankan farmers, and failed the Australian community once again.

Right now, breeding and production animals are not covered by the existing ‘ESCAS’ Australian regulatory scheme for live export supply chains.

This needs to change, now.

No one is protecting Australian dairy cattle from this cruelty, and it’s not good enough.

Urgent action must be taken to prevent more needless suffering.

These are Australia’s #ForgottenAnimals, and they need our protection now more than ever.

Join us in calling for an immediate halt to the exports to Sri Lanka, and an urgent review of the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS) to include dairy and breeder animals.

Take action – this link includes video footage options of terrible conditions:

https://www.rspca.org.au/campaigns/dairy-cattle-live-export?utm_source=Email+Campaign&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=27921-55561-Dairy+live+export

BREAKING NEWS – The ABC has revealed horrifying images and footage of sick, dying and dead dairy cattle and calves, that had been live exported to Sri Lanka for use in breeding and production.

CLICK HERE to see the full story. Warning – this story contains distressing imagery and footage.

CLICK HERE to read our media statement.

Each year Australia sends tens of thousands of dairy cattle and breeding animals all over the world to places like China, Indonesia, Taiwan and Malaysia to help them make dairy products and improve their local herds through breeding programs.

But unfortunately for these animals there are no laws to protect them from cruelty once they leave Australia, and nothing that guarantees their destination has the capacity to care for them – they are the forgotten animals.

While Australia’s live export regulation has been repeatedly proven to be inadequate, animals live exported for breeding or production have no protections at all.

They are the #forgottenanimals, and it’s not good enough.

Join us in demanding that the Australian government acts now to protect these animals from cruelty.

Don’t let these animals be forgotten.

Take Action

The Australian Government must act now to review the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS), and ensure it is expanded to protect animals live exported for production and breeding overseas, as well those designated for slaughter.