XPost: alt.atheism, soc.culture.israel, uk.legal   
   XPost: sci.med.cardiology   
   From: MEjercit@HotMail.com   
      
   Loose Cannon wrote:   
   > Hey Gook, you still expect us to believe that you and Chung aren't   
   > eating American domestic dogs and cats? All the other habits you had   
   > over there you brought here; why would this be the exception   
   >   
   >   
   > https://awionline.org/awi-quarterly/2013-summer/awi-investigat   
   s-illegal-dog-meat-trade-philippines-and-thailand   
   >   
   > y Rosalyn Morrison   
   >   
   > This past March, I traveled from Bangkok—where I had been attending   
   > the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade   
   > in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)—to Manila to   
   > participate in an undercover investigation on the dog meat trade in   
   > the Philippines. Raising awareness on this issue is of utmost   
   > importance to me; for two years, I campaigned in South Korea against   
   > this cruel trade (See the Winter 2012 AWI Quarterly.), returning home   
   > accompanied by Lucy, one of the so-called “dong-gae” dogs commonly   
   > raised and slaughtered for meat in South Korea. Lucy is now my   
   > constant companion and my ambassador on behalf of South Korean dogs.   
   >   
   > I arrived in Manila at 7 a.m. on Friday, March 15. Although utterly   
   > exhausted (after having barely slept the past two weeks at the CITES   
   > meeting), I was ready for another fast-paced—and incredibly   
   > emotional—adventure. From the airport, I took a taxi to the hotel,   
   > quickly showered, and then hopped in the bus with Andrew Plumbly, the   
   > executive director of Network for Animals; Frank Loftus, videographer   
   > from the Humane Society of the United States; and Martin Usborne, a   
   > photographer from the United Kingdom.   
   >   
   > Despite the interesting company, I soon passed out in the back seat of   
   > the bus. Even though it was stiflingly hot, I somehow managed to sleep   
   > throughout the bumpy drive to Baguio, a city of about 320,000 people   
   > in the northern province of Benguet and six hours (minimum) from the   
   > bustling capital of Manila. Baguio is the center of the Philippine dog   
   > meat trade and the location of most of the known dog meat restaurants   
   > in the country.   
   >   
   > The killing and selling of dogs for food is not legal in the   
   > Philippines. It was banned in Manila in 1982. A similar ban was   
   > enacted nationally in 1998 via the Animal Welfare Act (Republic Act   
   > No. 8485). The Act prohibits killing dogs for food with minimum   
   > penalties set at 1,000 pesos (equivalent to about US$22 at the time)   
   > and not less than six months in prison. The Anti-Rabies Act (RA 9482),   
   > passed in 2007, includes more severe penalties with minimum fines of   
   > 5,000 pesos per dog and not less than one year of imprisonment for   
   > participating in the trading of dogs for their meat. Despite the   
   > sanctions encoded in the law, however, law enforcement officials have   
   > done little to actually end this illicit trade.   
   >   
   > Upon arrival in Baguio, we headed for Comiles 2, a restaurant reputed   
   > to sell dog meat, where the waitress politely asked us if we wanted   
   > pork, chicken, or dog. Frank documented the encounter on film and as a   
   > result we have actual evidence, not just rumors, that the restaurant   
   > sells dog meat. Within a few minutes, another customer—a man who   
   > looked to be in his 40s—came into the restaurant and ordered a dish of   
   > barbequed dog meat. Martin walked over to take a picture of the   
   > customer’s dish, and the customer became very defensive, got his food   
   > to go, and left the restaurant noticeably upset. The owner of the   
   > restaurant became very aggressive, denied selling dog meat, and   
   > everyone in the room became very tense. After several minutes of   
   > disputing, we abruptly left the restaurant, evidence in hand.   
   >   
   > Afterward, we visited a local market and a city veterinarian, and   
   > spoke with a man who is building a shelter in the town of Bulakan for   
   > dogs rescued from slaughter. A few years ago, dog meat was sold in the   
   > open-air markets. On our trip, we did not see any dog meat for sale in   
   > the markets, which hopefully is a sign that the trade here is   
   > declining. We also stopped at a Korean restaurant to ask if they   
   > served dog meat and were pleased to learn they did not.   
   >   
   > Sunday, we drove to the town of San Pedro in Laguna province, where   
   > multiple dog meat traders are reported to operate. While there, we   
   > rescued a two-month-old puppy who was tied on a short chain—persuading   
   > the owner to part with her for $10. She was very dehydrated and   
   > hungry, with ticks in her flesh and parasites in her stomach. She will   
   > stay in the Philippines for a few months until she is ready to be   
   > adopted.   
   >   
   > The next morning, Andrew and I met with Ferdinand Manuel from the   
   > National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)—the equivalent of the FBI in   
   > the United States—to work on coordinating a raid to help save other   
   > dogs like our rescued puppy. After our meeting, two colleagues from   
   > the Humane Society International joined us at a meeting with Rubina   
   > Cresencio, the director of the Bureau of Animal Industry (a division   
   > of the Department of Agriculture) to discuss the best strategies for   
   > stopping the trade.   
   >   
   > Even though selling dog meat is illegal in the Philippines, half a   
   > million dogs are still brutally tortured and consumed every year.   
   > Historically, dog meat was associated with celebratory events and   
   > rituals of mourning and only affected a small number of dogs. However,   
   > over the past quarter century or so, the dog meat trade has rapidly   
   > expanded for commercial rather than cultural reasons.   
   >   
   > Investigators have documented the existence of at least 25 dog meat   
   > restaurants and four slaughterhouses in Baguio, seven dog meat traders   
   > in Laguna and Batangas provinces, and two slaughterhouses in   
   > Pangasinan province. Unfortunately, there are also many more   
   > underground entities involved in the industry throughout the northern   
   > provinces.   
   >   
   > Stray dogs are rounded up off the street and transported to Benguet   
   > and neighboring provinces under extremely inhumane conditions without   
   > food or water. Steel cans are forced around their muzzles and their   
   > legs are tied behind their backs. Many of the dogs are pets—some are   
   > still wearing their collars. According to international animal   
   > protection organizations who have engaged in extensive enforcement,   
   > nearly half the dogs die before they reach their final destination due   
   > to the stressful conditions of the transportation; at times of extreme   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-DOS v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)