(PK) Op Ed on Pakistani zoos

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Cruelty in zoos

Dawn Editorial

Tuesday, 09 Mar, 2010

 

An emaciated lioness has lost sight in one eye at the Karachi’s Korangi zoo.

–Fahim Siddiqi/White Star

Sindh

CDGK paying millions for ‘donated’ elephants

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CDGK paying millions for ‘donated’ elephants

*Cruelty towards animals is all too common in Pakistan. Across the country

we can see dogs with gaping head wounds inflicted by people who consider it

normal behaviour to stone feral canines. Donkeys and other beasts of burden

are beaten mercilessly, and even pet animals are sometimes subjected to the

harshest of treatment. *

 

But the savagery doesn’t end there. Zoos are supposed to be a refuge for

animals, especially those on the list of threatened or endangered species.

The modern concept of a zoo envisages an environment where animals whose

numbers are dwindling in the wild are protected, and perhaps bred, in

surroundings that resemble their natural habitats. Instead, what we get in

Pakistan is the imprisonment of animals in conditions that are cruel and

degrading.

 

As this paper highlighted on Monday, the situation is particularly alarming

in ‘mini zoos’ such as the one located in Karachi’s Korangi area. There is

simply no justification for these woebegone institutions when the

authorities concerned cannot even address the pitiful conditions prevailing

at the city’s main zoological garden. There and in other ‘zoos’ in Karachi,

many animals tend to be malnourished and diseased, and are mistreated by

staff and visitors alike.

 

Elsewhere in the country too, zoo animals die in mysterious circumstances in

the absence of adequate care by staff and prompt treatment by qualified

veterinarians. A shortage of funds may be a factor but throwing money at a

problem rarely produces results in Pakistan. This tragic state of affairs is

the result of human callousness and nothing will change until attitudes do.

Animals ought to be a source of awe, not amusement, and they shouldn’t be

seen as a source of revenue either. If zoos worth the name cannot be

maintained in this country, they should be done away with altogether.