Animal Rights activists are up in arms against the wild boar fights, which began in the 1960s (Reuters)
What had been a tragically common occurrence for decades in rural West Java, is no more, much to the delight of animal advocates everywhere!
Authorities in the West Java province of Indonesia announced today that an immediate ban has been issued on the appallingly cruel practice of dog and wild boar fighting.
The decision to stop the bloody spectacle that pit a dog against a wild boar in a vicious fight for their lives was most likely made following increased negative media coverage and growing pressure by animal advocates.
According to a Care2 petition that demanded the ban, these forced fights were “animal cruelty of the worst kind.”
Marison Guciano, an animal rights activist in Indonesia, agreed, describing the fights as “a criminal act against animals.”
The often-fatal animal fights had long been defended by some locals who claimed that the “contests” were a cultural tradition that must be protected.
The real motivation behind this particular death sport was money. Dog fighters could take in up to $2,000 if their canine won. Dog breeders would also fight their animals so they would be able to leverage the notoriety of their fighting dogs to sell more animals at higher prices.
“Not all traditions that we have are good,” Ade Sukalsah, a spokesman for provincial governor Ahmad Heryawan noted in an article in The Straits Times. “If a tradition has a bad influence and impact on people’s lives, the tradition must be eliminated or forgotten.”
These events had “a negative impact on the community by showing cruelty, torture, and violence against animals,” continued Sukalsah.
According to Sukalash, Heryawan’s decision to halt the fights was, in fact, based on Indonesian criminal law provisions against the torture of animals.
He also acknowledged that media reports, letters, and petitions sent from animal rights organizations contributed to the institution of the long-overdue ban.
Well done animal advocates, well done!
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