Earlier today as I browsed yahoo for some relevant articles around the world, I came up with one of the articles that caught my interest. The article is about the animal rights group requesting to free "lolong" a whopping 1075 kilogram and 6.4 meter long salt water crocodile captured in the province of Agusaln del Sur early this month , to its natural habitat.
 |
| Photo credit: globalvoicesonline.org |
According to PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) Asia-Pacific, "(The government) should do the compassionate thing and order this crocodile to be returned to his natural habitat, as taking him away to be locked up in an animal prison is just plain wrong," she wrote to AFP.
Upon reading the news, I could not help myself to weigh in what should be and what should not be in terms of animal hostility issues which these individual animal rights groups are concerned with.
Many instances related to this issue in the past always puzzled my mind. Let me clarify it right here that it is not my intention to counter people who love animals and believe that they should not be hurt or encouraged to kill each other. I myself is an animal lover too. Being raised in rural life where my parents used to breed carabaos, cattle, chickens, dogs, cats, pigs and pigeons among others, I imbibed that trait to love, own and breed these animals too. Not only I am an animal lover but also an environmentalist as well due to my continuing passion in planting trees, and my feeling of disgust once our environment is being maltreated by our fellows and some of our greedy brothers whose focus of interest is in the thickness of their pockets only.
Many years ago, a British animal rights group castigated the Igorots of the Philippines for slaughtering dogs as part of their cultural cuisine saying this was cruelty to animals.
Last June of this year, the second leg of the World Slasher Cup dubbed as the Olympics of cockfighting opened at the historic Araneta Coliseum. It is undoubtedly the biggest gathering of game-fowl breeders from all over the world including big names from America where cockfighting has been declared illegal. This event has been going on for over three decades and is enjoying unequaled popularity that draws thousands to the Big Dome for a week-long festival of cockfights.
It is so popular that West-based animal rights groups, using a local stooges, attempted to disrupt the World Slasher a few years ago by staging a rally in front of the Big Dome saying cockfighting is cruelty to animals.
In as much as I'd like to laud these groups for their effort to protect animal life from cruelty, I found it very elementary that they overexercised their duties and I cant help to ask myself what are their limitations. When I say limitations I mean how do they define "cruelty" as not to fall in the category of animal hostility where they said is wrong? With due respect, I would like to know the floor and the ceiling before any of these animal rights group accused anyone of us of having induced cruelty to the animals.
To protect animals, saving them from any harm, planning for their future and conservation is nothing but the most due process we humans should employ but we should also realized that in the world where we live in, there is a hierarchy among God's creations with human beings on top.
I believe that God created humans with ultimate wisdom to overlook for other species and by the law of nature they are subordinates to us which means humans can utilize them to whatever purpose they are capable of doing. So I understand that carabaos are bred to work in the farm , dogs to guard our houses, chickens to give us eggs, and so on. And since these animals are edible, humans also breed them for food including the dogs, pigs and any edible animals that could give us excellent meat. Some of them are ornamental and some are for entertainment. Yes, being on top of the hierarchy we humans use them to satisfy ourselves just like snakes eat chicks and frogs in the wilderness.
Now going back to the topic, how can we say cockfighting is animal cruelty if it is the nature of rosters to fight each other? Does it falls to be an animal cruelty just because humans let them fight in a bloody and fatal manner for their entertainment? At first glance maybe yes, but don't we know that before cockers let them fight they would breed them and roosters will be pampered for at least two years, given the best food, medicine and the best care and brought to the pit to be fought. If he wins, his line will be preserved by mating him to a flock of hens. He will be there with his harem for the next 8 to 10 years or until he dies. Is that cruelty? What about millions of poor broiler chickens beheaded and butchered without given the right to defend themselves and sold to the market for meat at the very raw age of 45 days which some of these animal rights group members also bought and ate? Are cockers cruel to game fowls and the butchers are uncruel to the broilers? Come on, this hypocrisy number 1 is teeth-gnashing!
 |
| photo credit: trekearth.com |
Secondly, why castigate the ifugao people for having dog meat as food when early Filipinos and other Asian people used to eat them thousands of years ago? Let's not get carried away by the western culture where they don't eat dogs because they bred them for pet and not for meat and the endearment of animals as pet prohibit them from doing so. That's their culture and let's respect them but it's unfair to make it as basis in regulating our own practice. If you don't want to eat dog because you think it's messy then be it. Nobody will force you to eat what you don't want to but don't stop others who want to eat them because our ancestors breed dogs for meat many years ago. Is killing a dog for meat means animal cruelty? What about killing hogs and cattle for meat? Igorots and some Filipinos slaughter dogs for meat because it is part of our culture and to say by doing so is cruelty to them is totally baseless. This hypocrisy number 2 is rank way over animal cruelty anyway.
Thirdly, the giant reptile was caught due to the fear of Agusan residents of their life. It was reported that fiew years ago, a girl pupil went missing after it was thought to be attacked by the crocodile while on her way to the school. This mid year, it was reported that a fisherman was missing up to this date in the same place and is widely suspected that he was attacked by the crocodile. The entrapment operation was planned by local government when the residents reported that they saw the giant reptile killing a water buffalu that caused panic among them. The giant crocodile was captured a week ago in Bunawan town through the combined efforts of the local government and a team from the Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center under the DENR. The reptile is now in a 800 square meter pen secured with 1.2 meter high concrete walls topped with welded wire in the town of Bunawan and it was closely monitored by experts being ill and not eating due probably to stress according to Ronnie Sumiller, a Wildlife official who led the hunting operation of lolong.
Animal rights activists immediately urged Philippine authorities and call for the release of the crocodile stating that natural conditions can never be replicated in zoos or animal shelters, resulting in physical and mental stress for captive animals.
"It's clear that the promoters of this park are thinking only of their bank balance, without so much as an after thought for the animal's well-being'" remarked by Ashley Fruno, senior campaigner for PETA Asia-Pacific
While I appreciate PETA's concern in as much as I respect their views about the issue, they lacked specific reasoning as to why they wanted the beast to be freed and citing that promoters of the park are thinking only of their bank balance without thought for the animal's well being is absolutely wrong.The crocodile was caught because of the fears of about 1300 residents who rely primarily in fishing as source of their living being attacked and that what prompted the local government to trap the reptile and not because of financial interests which the animal rights group claimed. Is it the government's fault if they turn the "residents threat" into a commercial one by making "lolong" a tourism attraction in the province?
The group also said that the government should do the compassionate thing and order this crocodile to be returned to his natural habitat, as taking him away to be locked up in an animal prison is just plain wrong.
I said why? What should be the right way? To free the reptile again and caused panic to some residents? To free the reptile in an isolate place where there are no inhabitants?
We all know that animals are balance in nature and I will not question that but I also believe that animals who pose threats shall be suppressed and controlled. Beside, when we put them in an animal pens, it doesn't mean they will be neglected and starve to death. They will be feed and given care by park's custodian accordingly. Of course they are not as free compared to when they are in their natural habitat but that is the most friendly approach for them not to pose danger. Is that animal cruelty? No, that's what we call controlling for further threats.
There's a reason why criminals are put to jail. Humans are animals too and everytime you pose a threat to the community, you should be controlled. Is that animal cruelty? If yes then why don't call to free the criminals in prisons? Do the animal rights group do that? Of course not, because this hypocrisy number three is as nauseating as their so called animal cruelty.
There is conflict in our world simply because some people believe that everybody should see things their way and mainly because they want to impose their views of righteousness on others. This bigotry is what causes troubles. I say let's suggest to our beloved members of animal rights group to act accordingly and let us put an end to this teeth-gnashing hypocrisy!
No comments:
Post a Comment