Telegraph, India, 9/12/03 Asia for Animals conference coverage

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forwarded by Debasis Chakrabarti debasischak

 

Friday, September 12, 2003

The Telegraph, Front Page > Calcutta > Story

 

Global pitch in animal care

SUBHRO SAHA

Animal welfare must be integrated with human welfare and due

importance should be given to zoonotic diseases. These two

fundamental tenets, stressed by a city-based animal activist, have

been adopted in the resolution of the Asia for Animals Symposium held

in Hong Kong from September 3 to 6.

 

Debasis Chakrabarti, founder, Compassionate Crusaders Trust, and

managing trustee, People for Animals, Calcutta - both city-based

animal- welfare NGOs - was the sole invitee from Calcutta on the

speakers' panel at the Hong Kong meet.

 

In his presentation at the session titled 'Communicating the message:

marketing for animal welfare groups', Chakrabarti emphasised the need

to coalesce animal and human welfare projects to derive maximum

benefits and to treat zoonotic diseases on a war footing to prevent

epidemics like SARS and rabies.

 

The conference, which attracted delegates from 15 countries and

representation by 50 organisations from all over Asia, decided to

include the moot points in Chakrabarti's discourse in its final

resolution. Co-hosted by Animals Asia Foundation and SPCA Hong Kong,

the four-day convention debated on what is needed in Asia to

realistically reflect the needs of animals.

 

Topics like rabies-control, live animal markets and SARS, use of

animals in traditional medicine, caring for street dogs and cats and

how local groups can improve their working relationship with

government departments were dealt with through structured

presentations, Q & A panels and open forums.

 

" Animal welfare is low priority because most people fail to

understand its relevance to our welfare, " argued Chakrabarti,

pointing out that some people think all animals are a nuisance from

lack of awareness and sensitivity, which " must be rectified " .

 

He also reasoned that preventive healthcare is several times cheaper

than curative healthcare and that some zoonotic diseases are

incurable, anyway. More than 70 per cent of the world's rabies deaths

occur in India and it's a 100 per cent zoonotic disease - almost

always transmitted from animal to man, he said in his presentation.

 

" At home, it is easy for any animal advocate from any nation to feel

overwhelmed by all the suffering he/she must cope with. But, at

conferences like this, people like Debasis, who have made significant

headway despite all the obstacles, are able to substantially help

others with their accumulated wisdom, " summed up Merritt Clifton.

 

The editor of Animal People, a leading US-based independent newspaper

providing " original investigative coverage " of animal protection

worldwide, felt the conference was " a landmark in the growth of the

animal advocacy movement in Asia " .

 

 

2002 The Telegraph. All rights reserved.

 

 

 

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