(KS)Dog lovers threaten World Cup boycott

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http://asia.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/east/08/05/korea.dog/index.html

 

Dog lovers threaten World Cup boycott

August 5, 2001 Posted: 7:31 PM HKT (1131 GMT)

 

By CNN's Joe Havely

in Hong Kong

 

SEOUL, South Korea -- Animal rights groups are

threatening to launch a boycott of next year's soccer

World Cup unless the South Korean government clamps

down on the sale of dog meat.

 

According to Seoul-based daily newspaper the Korea

Times, the groups -- based mainly in Britain and the

U.S. -- say the practice is barbaric and are demanding

officials take action to stamp it out.

 

Animal welfare groups have frequently protested

against the dog meat trade in Asia and there is a

growing dog's rights movement in South Korea itself.

 

They say dogs destined for the pot are often subject

to unimaginable levels of cruelty; kept in tiny,

filthy cages, with cases reported of dogs being

blow-torched to death.

 

Pain is traditionally said to improve the flavor.

 

The threatened boycott comes at one of the most

popular times of the year for Koreans to consume dog

meat -- a traditional occasion popularly known as

" Malbok " , the last of three annual " dog days " .

 

Dog stew

 

Although it is expensive, the meat is usually served

up in a soup or a spicy stew and is particularly

popular with old men in the belief that it boosts

virility.

 

But it is also officially illegal.

 

The sale and consumption of dog meat was banned in the

run up to the 1988 Seoul Olympics by officials worried

at the unfavorable light that would be cast on South

Korea's international reputation.

 

Now, with South Korea playing host to another major

international sporting event, concerns over the

lobbying power of the dog-loving world are once again

coming to the fore.

 

The 2002 World Cup finals are being jointly hosted by

Japan and South Korea -- the first time in the

tournament's history that two nations have staged the

event together.

 

The Korea Times says officials are trying to play down

the issue, saying such protests were a routine

occurrence any time the country played host to a

prominent international event.

 

" They send these letters all the time " , one government

official was quoted as saying.

 

" We are not considering any kind of concrete

countermeasures. "

 

'Ethnocentrism'

 

However, the Korea Times says many ordinary Koreans

feel that outsiders have no business interfering in

what is an important domestic tradition.

 

It quotes one contributor to a South Korean website as

saying: " It is obvious ethnocentrism for some

narrow-minded Westerners to denounce other people for

eating certain meat which they don't consume. "

 

" If they don't like a certain kind of meat, " the

writer went on, " then they shouldn't eat it and just

shut up instead of sticking their noses into the

eating practices of others. "

 

The paper quotes another dog meat advocate, Professor

Ahn Yong Guen, as calling on the government to take a

stand in defense of Korean traditions.

 

" It is a matter of taking pride in our traditional

culture, " Professor Ahn, author of a book entitled

'Koreans and Dog Meat', told the paper.

 

" Korea's dog meat lovers, most of whom are male

adults, consume dogs that are bred for eating, not

pets, " he said, adding that many other Asian nations

also consume dog with fans saying it is tastier than

other meats.

 

An Internet message quoted by the paper asked why

little pressure was being put on China, where dog meat

consumption is legal and more widespread, in the

run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

 

Puppy love

 

Others point to Korea's long-standing dog-loving

tradition.

 

For example, during the landmark inter-Korean summit

in Pyongyang last year, South Korean leader Kim

Dae-jung and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Il

exchanged pairs of puppies as a way of breaking the

ice.

 

The North Korean leader gave his guest two bundles of

white fluff named Unity and Independence, whilst in

return the South Korean leader presented his host with

two Jindo hunting dogs -- a rare Korean breed -- named

Peace and Reunification.

 

At the time officials from both sides said the pet

exchange -- other than providing an endearing human

touch to the summit -- helped show that the two Koreas

were in fact one people.

 

With many diners preferring to follow tradition rather

than the letter of the law, the opposition Grand

National Party has been trying to push through new

legislation it says is needed to properly regulate the

dog meat industry.

 

They say that the effect of banning the meat outright

has been to drive the industry underground, causing a

downturn in standards of hygiene and animal welfare.

 

The government however appears reluctant to take a

stand.

 

Officials say that with the World Cup bringing global

attention to South Korea, any move to re-legalize the

industry would risk unnecessarily incurring the wrath

of the dog-loving world.

 

 

 

 

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