SINGAPORE: Controversy is already beginning to form in Singapore after Australia's government gave the green light for mosques in the city-state to import animals ahead of the Eid al-Adha ritual slaughter in October. According to the Australian government, 16 mosques have been cleared after an audit by Canberra into the conditions of the mosques gave them approval. In March, the Australian government implemented new regulations that required animal exporters to meet internationally accepted animal welfare standards. Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister-in-Charge of Muslim Affairs, said: “I would like to give an assurance to our Australian friends that we'll do our very best to meet all the regulations in executing the Korban sacrifice this year.” But not all is well in Singapore as animal rights activists, including a few Muslims, told Bikyamasr.com that “this promotion of animal cruelty mt end.” Jameela Hassan, a Singapore citizen of Pakistani origin said that “live export is the worst kind of animal cruelty and while I believe Muslims, as I am one, should be given the right to carry out their rituals, this should have been an option after the recent reports of cruelty.” She was referring to the recent reports in Pakistan, where thousands of sheep were clubbed to death and buried alive by the ministry of agriculture after they claimed the animals were “tainted” and in Qatar where thousands of cows died after a failure to unload them. Pakistan ordered the cull after the ship carrying the sheep had been turned away by the Bahraini government and tested positive for salmonella and actinomyces. Australia's High Commissioner to Pakistan Peter Heyward said he was “surprised and concerned" about the killings, as he argued the animals met the south Asian country's health requirements for imported sheep and they posed “no human or animal health risks." That should be enough for the Singapore government to take a stand, said Hassan. “We have long fought for better animal treatment and this acceptance of live export is a push in the wrong direction,” she said. It comes after Egyptian officials refused to allow a shipment of young cows into the country last month from Brazil after officials in Cairo said the animals were infected with unknown hormones. Over 32,000 cows were slaughtered as a result after being forced to remain at port for weeks, causing mass deaths on board the ships. The stranded cows had made international headlines after Bikyamasr.com first reported their situation on September 1, including a Care2.com petition that was signed by over 25,000 people globally urging the Egyptian government to free the baby cows from their horrific conditions. Background on Live Export Live export from Brazil and Australia to the Islamic world is a controversial practice that sees thousands of animals crammed into small crates and transported by sea to their destination to be slaughtered for food. According to the ministry, tests had been conducted to learn more about the potential carcinogen that had been given to the animals before they would be unloaded. Tests had reportedly been ongoing for the past month at a private lab in Egypt, but no results had been conclusive. According to a al-Shorouk newspaper report, the animals are likely to remain in their confinement for a number of weeks more in order for further tests to take place. Earlier this year, some 3,000 of the cows died on a ship destined for Egypt after the Egyptian government refused to allow the ship to dock at a Red Sea port. They were slaughtered as a “precaution," the ministry said, outraging a number of Egyptians. Animals Australia, the leading organization reporting on the controversial live export trade to the Middle East and Southeast Asia, said the incident was among the worst the industry had witnessed in years. Animals Australia's Campaign Director, Lyn White, said in a statement to Bikyamasr.com that the ship was anchored at sea after being refused port in a number of countries, including Egypt, where the cattle were supposed to be offloaded. It's understood that ventilation problems on the converted livestock vessel, the MV Gracia Del Mar, had caused the deaths of more than half of the animals on board since the ship left South America for Egypt a few weeks ago. The ship was anchored in the Red Sea for weeks and saw more animals perish as a result. “This is nothing short of an animal welfare disaster. If remaining cattle are not offloaded more of these animals will suffer appalling deaths at sea. We are appealing to authorities in Egypt to offload the remaining cattle at al-Sohkna, as was originally intended. “This disaster is just another example of the inherent risks of transporting animals by sea. It was only nine years ago that 5,000 Australian sheep perished on board the MV Cormo Express after country after country refused to allow it to berth. “And this isn't the first time that mechanical issues have caused mass deaths on live export ships. We only need to look to the breakdown of the Al Messilah in Adelaide last year. Had that vessel broken down on the open ocean it would have caused a similar welfare catastrophe — as thousands of animals would have died. “Australia also exports cattle to Al Sohkna Livestock company in Egypt. Whilst we have an MoU with Egypt which should ensure the offloading of our animals, it has never been put to the test. The Egyptians thus far have flatly refused to allow the MV Gracia Del Mar to dock despite the mass suffering of the animals on board. “If they continue to refuse to allow the surviving animals to be unloaded it would provide little confidence that the non-binding agreement with Australia would be honoured if a similar incident were to occur on an Australian livestock ship. “It should not matter if these cattle aren't Australian and if Brazil doesn't have a similar piece of paper, they should not be abandoned to suffer and die at sea. We are appealing to Egyptian authorities to offload these cattle as a matter of urgency." Australia's live sheep exports have fallen significantly over the past decade. In 2010, three million sheep were exported compared with 6.3 million in 2001. Australia's government last year was to see a bill that would have banned live export to the world, but industry lobbyists fought back and forced the legislation off the table in a move that angered animal activists in the country and across the world, notably the Islamic world, which receives the lion's share of live cattle and sheep from both Australia and Brazil. ** Farah Hyder contributed to this report in New Delhi and Joseph Mayton in Cairo.
