A Brutality that Must Stop

July 15, 2005

http://www.bestfriends.org/allthegoodnews/magazine/bfmjul05pdf.pdf

During the war in Bosnia in the 1990s, each side accused the other of

" acting like animals. " Sure, the barbarity factor was horrific .But

people weren't acting like animals. More accurately, they were behaving

like humans. The war in the Balkans has been over for a decade. Most of

the violence between ethnic groups has stopped. But now it seems to be

turning on other species - especially homeless pets. Alarming reports

have been filtering in from citizens and tourists alike who have been

witnessing the brutal massacre of dogs and cats around the country. Even

obviously well-cared-for pets who venture onto the streets have been at

the mercy of the extermination campaign. In large cities like Belgrade,

there have been mass poisonings. In other towns, like the winter tourist

resort of Zlatibor, the mayor issues hunting permits that allow people

to shoot dogs on sight - often right in front of vacationing tourists

and children. (And before anyone writes off Serbians as totally

uncivilized " and quite different from us, " bear in mind that a similar

proposal to shoot feral cats on sight was on its way to become law in

Wisconsin until the governor stepped in to rule it out of bounds, and

two states actually have similar laws on their books.) Brave souls in

Serbia who try to step in and save animals that they see being hunted

have found themselves facing retribution themselves. There have even

been reports of private humane groups participating in the destruction.

Serbia faces a very real problem of stray animals. During the war, when

pets weren't allowed into human shelters, some 20,000 were pushed onto

the streets. And the population kept growing from there. There are few

animal protection laws on the books, and those that do exist are

routinely ignored. Still, hope is on the horizon. As reports filter out

to the larger world, international attention is increasingly being

turned on Serbia. Former screen siren and longtime animal activist

Brigitte Bardot has appealed to Serbian President Boris Tadic to stop

what she described as the " brutal cleansing " of stray animals. And her

Brigitte Bardot Foundation, working with another group, Respectons, has

created a new shelter for dogs. The plan is for them to be spayed or

neutered and to receive veterinary care before being set free in a

refuge managed by a local association, Oaza. Operating in Belgrade, the

group is taking in animals that are being rounded up by the municipal

government and saving them from being killed. As with many start-up

rescue efforts, it's a small step - but a lucky one for the animals who

make their way there.

Write to the Serbian authorities asking that the brutal treatment and

extermination of animals be stopped.

E-mails can be sent to Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica at Office of

Prime Minister VOJISLAV KOSTUNICA

<predsednikvladesrbije

predsednikvladesrbije; to the Minister of Agriculture

at office <office .yu ; to the

Minister of Science & the Environment at info

<info .yu ; and to the Embassy of Serbia and

Montenegro in Washington, D.C. at <ambassador

ambassador.

A barefoot man carries a dog during a flood at the village of Jasa

Tomic, near Belgrade, Serbia, in April AP Photo / Srdjan Ilic

ALSO

Please write a letter of protest to the Serbian Embassy in your county

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