"...it is necessary for Muslims to understand that the demand to stop the slaughter of cattle is not a cry against them, but a cry against the unspeakable cruelty to cattle by meat traders and butchers, disallowed by law." --- Continued cruelty demands ban on cattle slaughter --- By Sagarica Rajakarunanayake, Sathva Mithra The government is going ahead with a national scale milk industry incurring a massive investment. Its aims are to provide nutrition to the people, and eliminate the huge cost incurred by the state in importing milk powder to the country. The fillip given to dairy farmers in the way of enhanced prices for milk, and the improvement of the local strains of animals through high yielding imported breeds will bring them a better income. The milk cow will save our children from malnutrition and usher in health and prosperity, once more becoming an important asset. Strict laws must, therefore, be introduced to protect it. Such laws will be instrumental in reviving in our people the traditional values of compassion and gratitude to animals that help us in agriculture, dairy farming and other livelihoods. In the past, before the commercialization of our economy, animals were used by people to work in the field, obtain milk, and for transport .However, in accordance with Buddhist culture, animals were not cruelly and ruthlessly exploited; in fact people treated work animals with gratitude and cared for them until the end of their lives. The cow had gained a ‘mother image" in our society, because children were nourished by her milk and until about sixty years ago, the family cow was not sold to the butcher even past the age of productivity. Selling one’s cow was considered a despicable act and looked on with contempt. Laws were introduced both by the British and our post-colonial administrators regarding the ownership, use and administration of domestic and livestock animals. This was done based on colonial practices of the ruthless exploitation of animals for human use and not taking into account our own culture and practices of well over two thousand years. Based on this exploitative policy of British rulers we have among several other such pieces of legislation, the Animal’s Act of 1958, introduced by our own political leaders and administrators giving legal sanction to the slaughter of the cow after the age of productivity. I would make bold to say that by introducing this provision our own post-colonial rulers struck a blow at the very heart of Buddhist and Hindu values of gratitude, compassion and respect, not only for fellow humans but for all living beings. Unlike Indian national leaders who taught people to continue to respect their traditional values even after colonial rule, our political leaders with their Brown Sahib mentality, did their best to wean our people from traditional Buddhist values, and adopt colonial policies and practices such as the ruthless and cruel exploitation of animals. Buddhists have continued to ask for the protection of the cow after the age of productivity, but our politicians have been relentless, bent on encouraging dairy farmers to make full economic gain out of the cow. In several states in India, where the cow is considered sacred and cattle slaughter is prohibited, any attempts to slaughter cattle have led to violence against such perpetrators. Buddhists in Sri Lanka have so far shown high tolerance, not resorting to violence against the slaughter of cattle. However, in recent times there is a growing hostility among Buddhists to cattle slaughter and the meat trade, and a particular abhorrence of the slaughter of cows. A movement to restore Buddhist values, high among which is compassion to animals, is emerging The meat industry, riddled with corruption, has been allowed to grow to huge proportions with the state exercising little control over it. Several thousands of animals are slaughtered each day and a large number of these animals are stolen from farmers and villagers causing them great economic loss. Showing little concern for the growing milk industry, meat traders continue to steal a large number of milk cows from rural farmers and slaughter them. The giant meat trade, with its growing demand for animals has also compelled rural people steeped in poverty, to supply it with animals, thus undermining traditional Buddhist values. The meat trade spreads its tentacles everywhere, holding the police, from the lowest ranks to the higher officers, and officials of provincial councils and local government bodies in a tight grip of bribery and corruption. Meat traders are thereby openly enabled to flout the laws requiring the obtaining of permits and licences for the transport and slaughter of animals. They also connive in violating the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance in the transport, handling and treatment of animals. Intolerable to Buddhists and all humanitarian persons is the atrocious cruelty inflicted on animals in the meat trade. Animals are put through unspeakable tortures in transportation and in slaughterhouses. The abominable cruelties inflicted on cows, are particularly shocking and outrageous. Pregnant cows are crushed into overcrowded vehicles and transported in the most inhumane conditions, and in the abattoirs they are subjected to barbaric treatment prior to slaughter. Clearly the situation with regard to cattle slaughter, particularly the slaughter of cows, has now reached an intolerable state to Buddhists and all people who hold humanitarian views and do not condone the cruel exploitation of animals. In this context it is necessary for Muslims to understand that the demand to stop the slaughter of cattle is not a cry against them, but a cry against the unspeakable cruelty to cattle by meat traders and butchers, disallowed by law. This applies to Christians too who are engaged in the meat trade. We are surprised that Muslims choose to remain silent about such cruelty because according to what they often tell us, it is a matter of serious concern to them as the flesh of animals cruelly slaughtered is "haram", which they are prohibited from consuming. Recently the Australian government taught the world a lesson in refusing to tolerate cruelty to animals, in dealing with countries in matters of trade, even at a huge cost in money to the Australian state. Reacting to atrocious cruelty shown to livestock animals in the abattoirs of Indonesia and several other Muslim countries, it took the groundbreaking step of refusing to send any more live animals to these countries. Australia has taken the lead in showing it is important that a country’s animal rights record must be good in order to have animals exported to them. Australia puts Sri Lanka to shame in the atrociously cruel way we allow our animals to be treated in our own country despite our ancient tradition of compassion to animals. We are a civilized society where people belong to one of four great religions that call for compassion to all living species. Not a single of these religions condone the cruel exploitation of animals by man. It is quite evident that the meat traders and butchers will not stop the brutal treatment of cattle. The time has come for us to join in raising a cry to stop the slaughter of cattle, giving immediate priority to stopping the slaughter of cows. The refusal by butchers to stop the barbaric cruelty to cattle justifies this demand. island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=83910
Posted on: Sun, 21 Jul 2013 08:00:38 +0000
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