FWD (CN) Witnessing the worst of humanity

[Guest guest]

Jill's Blog

http://www.animalsasia.org/blog/index.php?entry=entry091103-162425

 

When celebrity chef Simon Bryant arrived on site at our bear sanctuary in

Chengdu, it was smiles all round. Simon is a fabulously popular personality

in Australia and this talented chef and committed animal lover was happy to

help in any way he could to benefit China's dogs, cats and bears!

 

Poor Simon hardly had time to catch his breath as he stepped off the flight

and walked straight into a press conference we had arranged for his arrival.

It couldn't have been more meaningful for companion animals in China, as

Simon, along with chefs from Chengdu and our own on-site chefs (Li Damu,

Zeng Zhiming, Deng Chengfang, Fu Kai) enthusiastically signed a pledge in

front of an array of China's print and TV media promising that they would

never cook, serve or eat dogs and cats.

 

With a variety of our Dr Dogs and rescued dogs helping them to make the

point, Simon and the local chefs happily spoke to the cameras and emphasised

why humankind was so much better off with dogs and cats as friends, rather

than food.

 

With a couple of hours spare before our flight to Guangzhou, Simon had time

for a quick walk around the sanctuary to meet bears like Douglas, who ambled

happily over to the fence-line to say hello.

 

And then it was time to take a deep breath and head off for the not-so-happy

experience of visiting a live-animal market and several safari parks in

southern China.

 

As ever, these hideous places exhibited the best and worst of humankind. The

best of course was demonstrated by people like our own Chinese staff of

Rainbow and Irene as they tirelessly chaperoned Simon, Dave (our Animal

Welfare Director), and I to some of the worst hell-holes for animals on this

earth.

 

Appalling safari parks and their even-more appalling animal shows, where

lions, tigers, bears and elephants were beaten, whipped and spiked to

perform acts so unnatural to their instincts in the wild, and where the

majority of enclosures held emaciated shells of animals that had given up

all hope.

 

Our first trip to the Guilin Tiger and Bear Park was a shocking example of

how these park managers deceive the government and China. Many years ago, we

exposed this park's ghastly practice of “live-animal feeding”.

 

At that time, Boris (our founding member and Project Director) and I filmed

juvenile tigers attacking and then biting the bodies of live piglets and

young calves as the tigers were supposedly “trained” in preparation for the

wild. As the audience cheered, the animals cried out pitifully in fear and

pain, while slowly bleeding to death. A diesel tractor then drove into the

ring, where it finally separated the tigers from their prey and shunted the

crippled and dying animals outside to be slaughtered finally.

 

A “front” for the real practice of selling tiger bone wine, and extracting

bile from the bears, this park has the horrible facade of pretending to be a

place of paradise for two of China's most beautiful endangered species.

 

On this return visit with Simon, we were greeted at the entrance by a sight

that left us reeling. On entering the park, there standing tall and proud

portraying a happy ambassador welcoming visitors to the park was a picture

of our own rescued bear, Andrew.

 

At first I found it hard to register that our glorious three-legged moon

bear, who died of liver cancer in February 2006, was now the poster boy for

a park that hurt and exploited tigers and bears so terribly.

 

But here he was, obscenely painted onto the welcoming poster at the front

gate – and no doubt turning in his grave. There are no words to describe our

anger – and yes, we are definitely taking this up with the authorities

concerned.

 

As we later chatted – just like tourists – to the salesgirl in the shop,

filming every sentence too, we learned that it was easy to export bear bile

and tiger bone wine to the UK (and, by default, the world) – which in fact,

and not surprisingly, is illegal

under both Chinese and international law. Note: another letter to another

Chinese bureau. As our “tour” moved on we saw this beautiful bear –

detoothed, defenceless and depressed.

 

The final horrors of this park saw a performance in an outdoor arena, where

petrified bears were forced to ride a motorbike on a high-wire at least 10

metres high, another bear shutting his eyes and trying to jerk his head back

as the trainer held on to the rope around his muzzle and viciously punched

him in the face – time and time again – when he didn't perform on cue.

 

Majestic tigers – one with a huge tumour on his leg (above) – were

humiliated and degraded at every opportunity. We left with heavy hearts, but

promising to take this up with the authorities – and vowing to have Andrew's

picture removed.

 

The next day – Sunday morning – saw the live-animal market teeming with

cages and pens of dogs, cats, donkeys, goats, rabbits, chickens, all

miserably awaiting their fate. As ever, many of the poor dogs were wearing

collars, showing that they'd either been stolen from their family's homes,

or where perhaps the owners had sold them to the market traders when they

were no longer wanted.

 

At one point, Dave heard a loud mewing and we saw a tiny newborn kitten

underneath one of the cat cages, where a mother had recently aborted her

young.

 

As Dave broke away and caused a diversion, I quietly scooped the little mite

from the ground and underneath my T-shirt. Irene realised immediately what

was happening and casually passed over her handbag so that we could more

easily hide the kitten and get back into our car and leave.

 

A quick call to Dr John at his vet clinic in Guangzhou saw him waiting there

when we arrived and once again he was called to help with a life that almost

certainly wouldn't survive. Just a year ago, we had brought him two newborn

kittens found on the ground of another market, but sadly they didn't live.

 

Still, she was strong and, in between sleeping, had suckled on my fingers on

the drive from the market, clearly with a will to survive. All we could do

was leave her in John's capable hands and keep everything crossed. We named

her “Panda”, in the hope that such a proud name would spur her on.

 

The other safari parks we visited – the Xiongsen Bear & Tiger Mountain

Village in Guilin and the Xiangjiang Safari park in Guangzhou – were ghastly

too – the same acts, the same deafening music announcing the shows and the

same miserable, depleted animals, beaten into submission by people who just

didn't care. And these poor animals are usually housed in stark cells of

concrete and metal bars.

 

After seeing a particularly sad elephant show, where the trainers flourished

a small white stick, we realised that a pointed spike had been inserted at

the end, and was being used as negative reinforcement; the trainers were

abusing the poor animals into performing as they wished. Rainbow managed to

take close-up pictures and these too will be sent to the park managers as

evidence of how some members of their audience will not be fooled.

 

At one point when the show had finished, Rainbow strode into the performance

ring and asked one of the trainers to show him his “magic stick”. The

trainer had long since got rid of it and professed not to know what Rainbow

had meant. I couldn't have been more proud of Rainbow for those few minutes

as he stood there fearless, persistent, and making his point about how

ashamed he was as a Chinese witnessing these depraved acts of abuse.

 

So now, finally away from the cruelty, we are currently writing up notes and

sending letters to the safari parks concerned, and discussing the

feasibility of a conference next year to focus on the plight of performing

wild animals.

 

Panda didn't make it. Dr John called the next day saying that she had passed

away – our little ray of hope among the horror, whose light had faded and

died.

 

Poor chef Simon was broken by what he'd seen – a never-ending round of

horror – wave after wave of sickening, violent behaviour towards animals

broken by uncaring, individuals who perhaps have become immune to the mental

and physical abuse they inflict.

 

The final sight of a Doberman caged in a dog-breeding park saw Simon walking

quietly away, head bowed – leaving dedicated people like Rainbow and Irene

fighting to protect the image of a country that is tainted with the misery

and bloodshed of the animals it betrays.