Chinese officials are set to ban the sale of dog meat at the annual Yulin festival, according to China-based activists. The Humane Society International (HSI) and advocacy group Duo Duo Animal Welfare Project say the southwestern city is poised “to prohib
Chinese officials are set to ban the sale of dog meat at the annual Yulin festival, according to China-based activists. The Humane Society International (HSI) and advocacy group Duo Duo Animal Welfare Project say the southwestern city is poised “to prohibit restaurants, street vendors and market traders from selling dog meat at the event”.
Actress Carrie Fisher joins MPs and campaigners to hand in 11 million signature petition at China’s London Embassy last year, to end Chinaís Yulin dog meat festival Photo:Dailymail
The ban, reportedly spearheaded by Mo Gongming, the newly appointed Communist Party secretary of Yulin, in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, will come into force on June 15, one week before the festival’s scheduled June 21 opening. They wants to change image of the city and turn into a cultural hub.
Those who break the ban risk arrest and fines up to 100,000 yuan (US$14,500), according to HSI.
HSI says three traders at Yulin’s biggest dog meat market, Dongkou, confirmed the ban.
“The Yulin dog meat festival is not over just yet,” said Peter Li, a China policy specialist at HSI.
The government is set to prohibit restaurants, street vendors and market traders from selling dog meat at Yulin’s Dongkou market. Photo:Dailymail
“Even if this is a temporary ban, we hope this will have a domino effect, leading to the collapse of the dog meat trade,” said Andrea Gung, executive director of Duo Duo Animal Welfare Project.
“This ban is consistent with my experience that Yulin and the rest of the country are changing for the better. I am very impressed that the younger generation in Yulin and in China is as compassionate as their counterparts in the rest of world.”
While the majority of Chinese people don’t eat dogs, the Yulin festival has become a focal point for the country’s trade in canine meat. Around 10 million dogs and four million cats are slaughtered for the meat in China each year.
One horrifying image shows a woman on a moped transporting 10 slaughtered dogs to the market to sell them. Photo:Dailymail
The dog meat trade poses a threat to public health, with the World Health Organisation warning that the trade spreads rabies and increases the risk of cholera.
We all hope this will turn out to be the beginning of the end of the dog-eating habit in China.
