Animal rights advocates have announced a victory in the fight against China's annual dog meat festival, saying authorities have agreed to ban the sale of dog meat in the week leading up to the event.
“I don't think they acknowledge it publicly,” said Andrea, founder of Proyecto Duo, regarding the responses from government authorities. “However, my source spoke to each of the dog meat vendors in Dongkou (the main meat market in Yulin) and they all said the same thing: there is a seven-day ban from June 15 on sales of dog meat. Meat of dog".
The Humane Society International and the Duo Duo Project, a California-based animal rights group, cited some reports from Chinese animal rights advocates, as well as dog meat dealers in China. According to these reports, anyone caught selling dog meat during the week leading up to the Yulin Dog Meat and Lychee Festival in China, which starts on June 21, will be fined up to 100,000 RMB (Chinese Money), which is equivalent to about $14,500, and could even spend some time in prison.
Although there have been other attempts to stop the sale of dog meat before, this is believed to be the first time the government has threatened concrete sanctions.
In the past, authorities have generally shied away from the issue, insisting that the festival is a local tradition to celebrate the start of the summer and is not organized or sponsored by the government.
It remains to be seen to what extent the restriction, which lasts only a week, will be enforced. Although it spans the days leading up to the festival and its opening, when most dogs are usually slaughtered and consumed, campaigners expect many – if not all – of the dog meat dealers will resume selling when the ban is lifted. Also, it is not clear if this includes cats, which are also eaten during the festival, although their meat is less popular.
"Even though these dog meat dealers are likely to go back to business as usual, the restriction still sends a clear message: their business and the way they make a living will get harder and harder from now on," Li said.
This ban is the latest development in what has become a very public fight between animal welfare advocates and residents and dog meat vendors in Yulin. Calls to cancel it have been growing.
The festival, according to activists, began only in 2009 at the initiative of dog meat sellers, who were looking to increase their sales. It is estimated that more than 10,000 dogs are consumed at the celebrations each year, many of which are believed to be stolen pets.
In the face of growing international scrutiny, residents and dog meat sellers are finding themselves increasingly on the defensive. Activists say only about 30 percent of people in Yulin eat dog meat on a regular basis, and many residents say they feel unfairly targeted. They argue that eating dog meat and lychee during the summer solstice is an ancient local custom and is no different from eating cows or pigs.
Today, calls to end the festival have become so widespread that it has become the focal point of a larger campaign to completely eradicate the consumption of dog meat in China, as well as the often brutal practices associated with it. with this largely unregulated trade.
“Chinese activists deserve a lot of credit,” Gung declared. “Most of the foreign activists usually leave town when the festival ends, but the local activists stay and keep talking about it; They care about this issue."