WATCH: Big stink leaves Cape Town, but animal suffering continues

The big stink has left Cape Town but the suffering of the animals on board will continue.

The National Council of SPCAs confirmed that the Al Kuwait livestock carrier, which covered Cape Town in a permeating stench since the weekend, set sail for Iraq last night, after the required feed was loaded onto the vessel.

The NSPCA with assistance of the Cape of Good Hope SPCA, conducted an inspection of the vessel between Sunday and Tuesday, and found dead and injured animals, with no option but to rest in pools of their own excrement.

Eight animals were humanely euthanised.

The NSPCA’s Jacques Peacock says unfortunately the animals will have to endure these same circumstances on their way to Iraq before their slaughter. The faeces and urine could not be cleaned out as it would have resulted in polluting the harbour.

He says from the time these animals board a livestock carrier, to the time they are slaughtered at their destination, they sit in their own urine and faeces, as these companies will lose out on profit if they had to clean the vessels.

Plus, the environmental health of ports would be in serious jeopardy if masses amounts or urine and faeces had to be dumped every time a ship docks.

Where there are animals and money, there will be cruelty

The NSPCA says this incident is a stark reminder that the live export of animals by sea is a gruesome and outdated practice that inflicts unnecessary suffering on sentient beings.

They have called for urgent legislative reform and heightened global awareness to end this practice.

While a complete ban on live animal exports via sea remains the ultimate goal, we urge the government to refrain from authorising another shipment from South Africa until these regulations are firmly established as a matter of utmost urgency.

The Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute (SAFCEI) Board – made up of Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Braham Kumari faiths – has added its voice to those expressing outrage.

Chairperson of the SAFCEI Board, Dr. Braam Hanekom has called for an in-depth investigation by the Department of Agriculture into this.

This raises the question we have been asking for so long about the specific farming methods that we see around us and also the related value chain of how things are conducted. We ask that the government takes immediate action in line with the current legislation.

Former SAFCEI board member and First Deputy President of the Muslim Judicial Council, Shuaib Appleby, has even proposed a fatwa on farmed animals being transported in this manner.

In addition, the grouping is demanding that the Animal Health Act is amended to specifically disallow the transit of animals through SA in conditions which are harmful to their health.

The NSPCA has been in court for years arguing for a ban on the live export of animals.