India Bans Live-Animal Exports
After appeals from animal rights activists, India’s Union Ministry of Shipping has announced that it has banned the export of animals for slaughter from all its seaports.
“There were demands from the public to stop export of livestock for the purpose of slaughter,” Union Minister of State for Shipping Mansukh Mandaviya told The Indian Express. “There were many complaints and representations from jivdaya premis (those advocating compassion towards all living beings) and animal rights activists.”
The Australian public also wants to end live export, if only our politicians would listen.
Howard Wright ©Howard WrightIndependent polling commissioned by the RSPCA and conducted in April 2018 found that 75 per cent of Australians want to see live-sheep exports be phased out. It’s all too easy to see why.
For more than a decade, investigations have shown the horrifying conditions endured by sheep and cattle exported from Australian shores. Often being shipped for weeks on end in the searing heat, many of these animals die from dehydration, starvation, or disease, whereas others are trampled to death.
Those who survive the journey are often subjected to abuse and methods of slaughter that would be illegal in Australia. Investigators have seen animals being roughly dragged from ships and thrown into trucks and cars, and most often, their throats are cut while they’re still conscious.
As the Australian Parliament resumes this week, we need to call louder than ever for an end to this industry in our own country.
Right now, two pieces of legislation have the potential to change the fate of millions of sheep: the Live Sheep Long Haul Export Prohibition Bill 2018 and the Animal Export Legislation Amendment (Ending Long-Haul Live Sheep Exports) Bill 2018.
