Worldlog week 38 – 2013


16 ספטמבר 2013

Last week I asked parliamentary questions about the gruesome news that Romania will cull tens of thousands of stray dogs. In order to solve their problem, the Romanian government voted en masse for an Act that allows random stray snatchings, and to kill them via poisoning, beating them to death, or letting them starve in shelters. This is truly unbelievable. I want our State Secretary of Economic Affairs to talk to her Romanian colleague about this mass murder of free-roaming dogs.

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Romania has around three million stray dogs. The new act means stray dogs can be killed after remaining 14 days in a shelter. I cannot believe that the Romanian government is allowing dogs to be beaten to death and is even helping to disseminate poison. It should not be possible for European Union member state to carry out such a cruel plan!

Several e-mail petitions have been set up to convince Romanian President Trajan Basescu not to sign this act. After all, he is the only one left to sign this act into law, so let him know that this has to stop! Sign the PiepVandaag e-mail petition here and the VIERVOETERS animal welfare organisation’s petition here.

Something to listen to: ‘Abandoned In Romania, a song dedicated to stray dogs

Happy news from overseas. Bonaire has finally agreed to the donkey rescue plan! We asked parliamentary questions on this topic in June of this year when it appeared that free-roaming donkeys on Bonaire were being abused and killed.

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Starting this week, my Worldlog will be translated into Croatian. Isn’t that great? Welcome to all my Croatian readers.

Fortunately, as a result of our parliamentary questions, we’ve managed to call a stop to cattle traders’ disgusting plan to transport nine-week old calves to Turkey. The State Secretary specified that she is an advocate of the European regulation that limits transport duration to eight hours and that is why she will not support calf transport to Turkey.

We want to shorten animal transport duration to a maximum of two hours, so we have quite a bit of work ahead of us. Because, shunting animals from pillar to post must stop! Long distance transport causes serious animal suffering. Lorries are usually overfilled and many animals have no access to food or water during their hours-long journey. The animals additionally receive insufficient rest and they’re even moved during extreme weather conditions.

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Breaking news! Increasing numbers of top-end designers are refusing to use fur. Among them is leading Dutch designers Erny van Reijmersdal. Hopefully many more are to come.

We have America to thank for this next lovely story… An anonymous American paid $50,000 to purchase thousands of battery hen’s freedom. They were due for slaughter. Read the entire story here.

And this is true must-see: ‘How Troy, Michigan saved the library’

See you next week! Marianne