02/04/02 Demand for an Investigation

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Killing of cats and dogs because of 300 meters

THE REQUEST OF ANIMAL FRIENDS SUBMITTED TO THE POLICE STATION PRELOG FOR INVESTIGATION OF CASES OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS IN THE LAST SEVEN DAYS
Is there an end to the hunting terror?

In the last few days, lynching of cats and dogs could be seen in various daily newspapers. Somebody, who is obviously not in his right mind, tortures the puppies, adult cats and dogs, and afterwards literally hangs them on trees.

A spiteful message came from the hunting club stating that cats and dogs that are 300 meters away from the town are considered to be stray animals and may, as such, be killed pursuant to the Law.

As an animal rights and protection organization and as concerned citizens of the Republic of Croatia, we request that the Police station Prelog investigate the cases of puppies and cats been hung near Prelog in the last seven days, and bring in the culprits. Although, at the moment, the Law allows the hunters to kill cats and dogs that are 300 meters away from the town, there is no Law that allows them to indulge themselves on animals and hang them on trees.

We have often had a chance to see similar incidents all over Croatia, when various companion animals were killed and when the hunters greeted all of that with an ironic smile, because they are protected by a ridiculous Law that allows killing of all animals that are 300 meters away from the town. But hanging of poor animals as a threat and a sign of hatred is beyond all limits.

Executions of companion animals are mostly seen as warnings to the citizens to look after their animals, or they will end up like that too. Does our society allow open threats and can those who threat get away with it?

Why are hunters treated differently than other citizens? We can often read about cases in the newspapers, in which hunters shoot the animals in towns, even in the courtyards, injure both animals and people and get away with it, or at least are punished far less severely than somebody that is not a hunter.

We also ask the Ministry of Internal Affairs to investigate the mentioned cases of cruelty to animals, but also to undertake measures against hunters and hunting clubs that make mockery both of the Law and at the citizens of the Republic of Croatia in this way.

THE REQUEST OF ANIMAL FRIENDS FOR MODIFICATION OF THE LAW PURSUANT TO WHICH CATS AND DOGS THAT ARE 300 METERS AWAY FROM THE TOWN ARE CONSIDERED TO BE STRAY ANIMALS AND MAY, AS SUCH, BE KILLED BY HUNTERS

In the last few days, lynching of cats and dogs could be seen in various daily newspapers. Somebody, who is obviously not in his right mind, tortures the puppies, adult cats and dogs, and afterwards literally hangs them on trees.

We have a reason to suspect that this is the work of the hunters, because a spiteful message came precisely from the hunting club stating that cats and dogs that are 300 meters away from the town are considered to be stray animals and may, as such, be killed pursuant to the Law. Their open confession that they gladly practice something like that - like killing cats and dogs - did not really shock us. A person that kills wild animals for fun does not find it especially difficult to kill a cat or dog either. From an ethical point of view, the killing of different animals is still killing.

But the public is not shocked only by killing of domestic animals that are only 300 meters away from the town, but by the proof of that cruelty. The killed animals that have to be buried immediately pursuant to the Law, are tortured, and in some cases even hung on trees to everybody's horror.

We wonder, how great the hatred and bloodthirstiness is in the minds of those people that are willing to kill an animal because it is 300 meters away from the town it lives in, and then hang the poor cat or dog on a tree at the roadside so that the people passing there could see their disfigured bodies?

If somebody parks a car on somebody else's property, the owner of the property must not destroy that car, but in case of the hunting, a dog that accidentally enters the hunting ground or walks 300 meters away from the town, may be killed on purpose.

Are we really helpless, do we really have to watch this happen?! How many animals have to be killed and tortured for this to be banned?

For years past, several dozens of cases involving the killing of cats, dogs, and even donkeys happened. Many of them were in the enclosed space and within towns. There was great media hype over some of those cases, but the solution was never found after all.

Therefore, as an animal protection organization, we request that the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry immediately change that Law. We ask that the licence for hunters killing cats, dogs and other animals they are not entitled to kill be withdrawn, regardless of the their distance from the town.

Those animals are no threat either to the wild animals or the hunters, because in the most cases they are puppies, or tame and gentle companion animals. Those are not packs of wild dogs, but puppies or mongrels wandering through the meadows around the place where they live.

We consider this Law completely unfair and pointless and we request that it be modified. We ask the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to consider our protests and reactions of the public to all cases of killing domestic animals by the hunters in the past few years, when the majority of citizens of our country severely condemned the hunters' ruthlessness.

On Monday, February 4, 2002, we launched an international Internet petition for support to our request, and by now we have received hundreds of signatures and letters of support from all over the world. The world is horrified by stories coming from our country regarding the exploitation of the Law by the hunters. We are also going to start the signing of the petition in the streets, and the people will be able to sign it in Zagreb, as well as in other Croatian cities. In this way, one will be able to see the citizens' will and the need for modification of this Law. We hope that the Ministry will hear that voice and make the abuse and torture of companion animals stop, at least by the hunters, because of the ridiculous Law on 300 metres!

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