'Roo slaughter 'cruelest in world'
While I too would like to see the annual
slaughter of dolphins in Taiji come to an end, I feel I must correct a
number of misstatements made by Ms. Bowen-Saunders regarding the
treatment of kangaroos in Australia.
About kangaroo killing, Ms. Bowen-Saunders
says: "I have heard the Japanese defend whaling and dolphin murder by
saying Australia is hypocritical for killing kangaroos. This is done,
however, when numbers have exploded, the animals have eaten all
available food and are often starving. They are shot quickly and cleanly
by professional shooters. The majority of the time there is no
suffering, and the culls are regulated.
"They are not murdered slowly en masse.
Almost all Australian wildlife is protected, and culling is done as a
last resort, not for annual amusement."
The killing of kangaroos in Australia is the
world's largest land-based animal slaughter. The Australian government
has sanctioned the commercial killing of over 5 million kangaroos in
2012 alone. Rather than being "a last resort", kangaroo killing is
undertaken on a huge scale and for significant commercial gain. It forms
the basis of a multimillion-dollar skin and meat industry.
It is important to note that the annual
kangaroo quota does not include the baby kangaroos (joeys) killed when
their mothers are shot. Female kangaroos often have a joey in their
pouch, as well as one at their feet. It is estimated that each year over
1 million joeys are either killed by shooters or left to die of
starvation, predation or exposure. Joeys are decapitated, shot or
clubbed to death.
Nor does the quota include the kangaroos left
in the field because they have not been shot cleanly (and therefore
cannot be accepted for processing) or that escape injured and later die.
The relevant codes of practice require that kangaroos be shot in the
head, but this does not always happen.
Former kangaroo shooter David Nicholls has
said: "The mouth of a kangaroo can be blown off and the kangaroo can
escape to die of shock and starvation. Forearms can be blown off, as can
ears, eyes and noses. Stomachs can be hit, expelling the contents with
the kangaroo still alive. Backbones can be pulverized to an
unrecognizable state, etc. Hind legs can be shattered with the kangaroo
desperately trying to get away on the other or without the use of
either. To deny that this goes on is just an exercise in attempting to
fool the public."
It is estimated that each year between
120,000 and 1 million kangaroos are mis-shot in this way (unfortunately,
due to lack of monitoring a better estimate is not available). It is no
wonder Australian animal protection advocates have called kangaroo
killing "the cruelest wildlife slaughter in the world."
The quota also does not include the kangaroos
shot for recreation. Yes, Australians do shoot kangaroos for their
"amusement," including after a few beers. These shooters are not
professionals and they do not undergo competency testing, so the animals
are even more likely to suffer a painful death.
The fact that kangaroo killing is regulated
means little. Policing and enforcement are almost nonexistent because
the killing occurs in numerous remote parts of Australia under the cover
of night.
There are many similarities between the
slaughter of dolphins in Taiji and the killing of Australian kangaroos.
In both cases, the animals are killed for their meat or as "pest
control," and in both cases they suffer terribly. In terms of scale,
however, the slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, while horrendous, pales in
comparison to the bloodbath taking place in Australia.
As Australians we should not be seeking to
defend the killing of kangaroos, or to downplay the extent to which it
occurs. If we are horrified by the killing of dolphins in Japan, we
should be equally (if not more) appalled by the killing of kangaroos in
Australia. We should be pleading with our governments and fellow
Australians "Stop the annual kangaroo massacre, make your children
proud."
ANGELA RADICH
Numazu, Shizuoka
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