Animals are living creatures, not gadgets, toys or accessories and no products or means to entertain people. Animals deserve proper protection. This starts with the recognition of their rights and respect for their own nature and needs. It defines the limits of the purposes for which animals may be used.
We want to move away from the automatic assumption that animals can be used for just any purpose. Entertainment, sports, advertising purposes and fashion are not good reasons to use, harm or kill animals.
The welfare of animals is in peril due to the manner in which they are bred, traded, held and slaughtered. Any abuse or neglect of animals by humans calls for immediate and strong action.
The Dutch Party for the Animals’ proposal to ban mink farming was adopted by the Dutch parliament last week. This will put a stop to the Dutch mink farming industry: the world's fourth largest after China, Denmark and Poland. This spring, COVID-19 broke out in 17 mink farms in the Netherlands. Almost 600,000 minks were gassed to death prematurely to prevent further spreading. Although the governme...