Animal rights activists try to shut down China dog meat festival

A group of animal rights activists are trying to shut down an annual summer dog meat festival in southern China which has been blamed for making the country’s international reputation look bad, as well as fueling extreme cruelty to canines and unhygienic food practices.

Activists said on Monday that they will continue to press for the festival to be banned as well as press for legislation to outlaw the killing of dogs and cats and the consumption of their meat.

According to research,about 10-20 million dogs are killed each year in China. The dog meat festival will take place on June 20 in the city of Yulin.

Yu Hongmei, director of the VShine Animal Protection Association, said China needs to follow the example of developed nations that have banned eating dog and cat.

He said:

“China needs to progress with the times,”. “Preventing cruelty to animals is the sign of a mature, civilized society.”

Restaurant owners defended themselves by saying eating dog meat is traditional during the summer, but animal activists say the festival that began in 2010 has no cultural value and was merely invented to drum up business.

In 2014, the local government disassociated itself from the event and forbade its employees from attending and limiting its size by shutting down some dog markets and slaughter houses.

As much as the activists try, over 10,000 dogs, many of them stolen, still wearing their collars, are slaughtered for the festival held deep inside the poor, mainly rural Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.