Article

[Guest guest]

Haribol Prabhus

 

Please accept my humble obeisances

All glories to Srila Prabhupada

 

Thanks for all the feedback. I've used what I could along with

the response I received from Mahaman Prabhu in Vrindavana and put

the article up at http://www.iskcon.com/news/index.htm

 

For those without internet access I have copied the letter below,

but you'll miss the nice cow pic.

 

I hope it meets with your satsifaction. Please let me know if

there are any glaring blunders.

 

Your servant

Bhakta Lyall

 

GBC failing to ensure cows protected

By Lyall Ward

28 January 2001

 

Cow abuse. To most in the west it might sound like a joke and

even within ISKCON many might be tempted to ignore the problem in

the face of issues such as child-abuse and the treatment of

women. However Srila Prabhupada often pointed to a direct link

between cow slaughter and the problems facing modern society. In

theory, ISKCON's governing body, the GBC, treats this issue

seriously, having put in place a set of minimum cow protection

standards in 1999. In practice it seems, according to ISKCON's

Ministry for Cow Protection and Agriculture, that the GBC are not

fulfilling their responsibility to ensure these standards are

maintained.

 

At the 1999 GBC meetings resolution 507 was passed outlining

standards for cow protection within ISKCON, based on the

principle that cows are domestic animals depending fully on

humans for their protection. (Click here to learn more about

these standards.) Essential to the maintenance of these standards

is the responsibility of each GBC to personally visit (or to

delegate a representative to visit) each centre or project that

has cows in its care and ensure standards are upheld and that

regular reports are forwarded to the Minsitry for Cow Protection.

According to Balabhadra Dasa of the Ministry for Cow Protection,

the GBC has been 'overwhelmingly negligent' on this score.

According to his figures, by now two hundred reports should have

been received from approximately fifty farms. Only 28 have been

received with only one farm, Gita Nagari, fully complying.

 

As is the case with most ISKCON ministries, the Ministry for Cow

Protection is unfunded and is kept afloat by the commitment of

its members, and in this case, promised co-operation of the GBC.

 

With no funds and no GBC support the Ministry is finding it

impossible to validate or deny claims of maltreatment of cows on

ISKCON farms. Some of the more worrying complaints they have

received include:

 

Vrndavana, India: Claims of over-breeding focused on milk

production. This leads to too many cows squeezed on to too little

land. Allegations that cows outnumber bulls by more than

two-to-one, have led to suspicions that some of Vrindavana's

bulls are being sold for slaughter. (Bulls are often seen as

useless when there is an emphasis on milk-production and

insufficient use of bulls as workers.) The Ministry has received

no cow protection reports from the responsible GBCs.

 

Mayapur, India: Similar concerns of overcrowding (it is claimed

that the animals are squeezed into one-twentieth the land needed)

and fears of slaughter (following reports that cows here

outnumber bulls by six-to-one). Only one report has been received

from Mayapur. Particular fear has been expressed on the fate of

the cows since the floods in October.

 

New Gokula, Australia: There have been allegations of flagrant

neglect of animals' health and even violent treatment of animals.

The local GBCs have submitted no cow protection reports.

 

The Vaisnava Times has tried to contact the GBCs responsible for

these projects but received no reply. However, Mahaman Dasa, the

Temple President at Vrindavana wrote: 'that there

is no abuse nor has there been since quite some time.' He denied

that any cows or bulls have been sold for any purpose let alone

for slaughter and that the proper care of cows in Vrindavana can

be very easily verified. He also guaranteed that regular reports

would in future be forthcoming. However there was no mention as

to whether the local GBCs would be regularly inspecting the

facilities as directed by the 1999 resolutions.

 

Pancaratna Dasa, although not directly responsible for reporting

at New Gokula, is on record as having found 'no evidence' of

mistreatment of cows there.

 

It may be that all the above allegations arise from

misunderstandings. However, without regular reports or visits the

fear remains that cow-abuse is another problem being swept under

the carpet.

 

It may be that mistreatment of cows is occurring throughout

ISKCON without the Ministry's knowing about it or being able to

do anything to prevent it. Particular fears have arisen as animal

welfare groups such as PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of

Animals) are taking a strong stand on the mistreatment of cows in

India (see www.cowsarecool.com). ISKCON appears unable to take

the high moral ground on this issue, it may even be culpable.

 

The Ministry for Cow Protection has, in numerous public and

private letters, renewed its pleas that this issue be taken

seriously. The response according to Balabahdra Dasa has been

'negligible'.