Wet wildlife markets! Shenzen bans the consumption of dogs and cats, Will penalize the violators!
- The worldwide spread of and the mortality due to the current coronavirus infection has caused people to rethink on their lifestyle, way of living, and eating habits.
- Various theories have come forth on the origin of the deadly highly virulent virus.
Some have blamed it on the 5G and some have claimed that it is a biological weapon produced in the lab to destroy the rival countries.
While some believe that it originated from the dog and cat eating habits prevalent in China and the Far East. They attribute it to the wet wildlife markets in Wuhan.
Shenzen bans consumption of dogs and cats
Based on some evidence on the origin of the coronavirus, one city in China has decided to put a ban on the consumption of dogs and cats in its territories by humans. This city is Shenzen located in Southeastern China. It is the first Chinese city to put this ban in place.
The relevant authorities of that city made new rules on this which will come into effect from 1 May 2020. The government has said that animals raised as pets in the house can no further be eaten. This act would be considered illegal and punishable by law. This was announced on 2 April 2020.
In February 2020, after facing the crisis due to coronavirus, China has passed a law in which all consumption of wild animals is banned.
And now Shenzen city authorities have stated that the new rule would prohibit people from consuming state-protected wild animals and other terrestrial wild animals taken from their natural habitats, as well as captive-bred and farmed terrestrial wild species.
Additionally, it bans the consumption of animals raised as pets, such as cats and dogs.
Therefore, animals which people can legally and safely consume are pig, cattle, sheep, donkey, rabbit, chicken, duck, goose, pigeon, quail, and aquatic animals who do not come under the purview of protected species.
The authorities announced:
“If convicted, they will be subjected to a fine of 30 times of the wild animal’s value, if the animal is above the value of 10,000CNY [$1400 USD],”
The origin of coronavirus
It is widely believed that the deadly virus coronavirus started in the wet wildlife market of Wuhan, a city in China.
Hence in order to check on it and prevent another such disastrous outbreak, the Chinese authorities have decided to intervene and bring the lucrative money-making wildlife business under control.
The dead wild animals are kept stacked up in the wet markets and the virus is said to have originated here. These markets lack adequate standards of health, safety, and welfare. The current Covid-19 is said to have come out of the people who work and shop there. And due to its high virulence, lethality, and contagiousness spread to other parts of the world rather rapidly.
Will the law end the trade?
It looks rather difficult that the trade in wild animals would end with the law. The reason is that people do not only eat wild animals. But they are an important ingredient of several traditional Chinese medicines.
Besides, humans utilize them in clothing, ornaments, and even keep them as pets. The cultural roots into their use run deep and a law cannot easily uprooted them.
Besides, there was a previous attempt by the Chinese authorities to contain this infection-causing trade. In 2003, when the SARS epidemic gripped the world, the civets — mongoose-type creatures were the root cause. The authorities culled them in large numbers and later the government put a ban on their trade.
Besides at the same time, Guangzhou banned selling of snakes for some time. But the trade mushroomed back again. Even now, in some parts of China, people relish the edible dishes made of these animals. When will humans learn???
Source: CNN
