China, a country of the unethical treatment of animals

With poverty looming in the rural provinces of China, people with desperate needs often resort to anything to make money, regardless of any ethical and morale issues. Often these unethical and immoral acts resulted in severe consequences for its inhabitants, but this time around, it is the animals that suffers.

This week, CTV broadcasted a news clip of the unethical treatments and the brutal torturing of animals at privately owned Chinese zoos. Please check it out here.

Because of the severe lack of state laws on animal protection and well-being, the owner of these illegal zoos intentionally put sick and weak animals (usually domesticated animals) into an open arena with a group of hungry tigers. Spectators then watched the horrific onslaught of these poor animals. The zoo keepers insisted they're showing what occurs naturally in the wild, but upon further investigations we see that the predatory animals were imprisoned in cages no bigger than their size. The keepers also fed tigers bones to induce a hungry appetite that are beneficial for later shows.

This type of incident is of nothing new since Chinese medicine merchants usually poach or torture the captive animals for their body parts to be sold at the lucrative Chinese black markets. But this time, its purpose is solely for the entertainment of onlookers, which is quite sick and disgusting.

China has become one of the fastest growing economy of the world, partly due to its under evaluated currency (renminbi) and partly due to its vast contingent of cheap labour. However, with this growth, there're also setbacks in many issues such as the human rights, animal rights, environment, patent infringement and its political agenda.

China is the host of 2008 Olympics in Beijing. The government of China should set standards as an Olympic host and abolish the old ideas and strive for positive changes in human rights, the environment, and animal rights!

At least put the poor animals in proper zoos, stop the illegal poaching and the exploit of animal parts for traditional Chinese medicine. They don't deserve getting butchered in a Colleseum sport!