FW: URGENT: MASSACRE of kangaroos on Canberra's doorstep (Australia)

[Guest guest]

Original Messenger: TeresaAfW

[teresa_afw] 29 july

2004 23:51

 

 

URGENT:

MASSACRE of kangaroos on Canberra's doorstep (Australia)

 

 

 

PLEASE ACT URGENTLY

 

 

Dear friends

 

 

I have been away for about 2 months. Unfortunately I

have learned on my return that hundreds of kangaroos have been murdered on Canberra’s doorstep. Many of

you are aware of this already but for those who are not, here is a brief

introduction.

 

 

 

 

 

On Sunday night, the 11th of July

2004, Environment ACT sent commercial kangaroo shooters into the Googong Dam

catchment area, a Fauna Reserve. Shooters were instructed to kill between

‘800 and 1100’ Grey Kangaroos.

 

 

Chief Minister, Jon Stanhope, claims the water supply at

Googong is at risk of being contaminated by the large number of kangaroos

gathering there. NSW National Parks and Wildlife provided permits for the

shooting to take place as Googong is in NSW.

 

 

 

The ACT Government conducted NO community consultation before deciding to shoot

the animals. They also did not attempt any other methods of trying to

prevent the animals from using the dam. Environment ACT has given a

number of reasons to try to justify the kill, but none are able to be

substantiated. First they claimed the kangaroos were the cause of erosion, when

livestock from properties adjoining the dam are clearly the real culprits.

However, when we pointed this out, Environment ACT claimed the kangaroos were

starving, and so needed to be slaughtered.

These

kangaroos are NOT starving. There is plenty of dry feed on un-stocked

properties and road reserves within easy reach of the dam. The dead animals

will be used by the commercial kangaroo industry - to be sold as meat, pet food

or used for leather. This will be the first time the commercial kangaroo

industry has 'harvested' animals from this region. The

industry has be trying to open its operations up in the region and this appears

to be the first sign they have succeeded.

 

 

The Googong Dam

protests continued all this week, with protesters accessing the dam site at

night.

 

 

Picture just one of the scenes: ...Two shooters are in a 4WD

truck with the heater going full bore. The night is black, and like most nights

at the Dam, the temperature is below zero, and some nights with rain and sleet,

and snow on adjacent mountains.The shooters spotlight and shoot female

kangaroos. They shoot a female, drag a joey out of the

dead mothers pouch, cut it’s head off or bash it’s head in, as

required by the Code of Practice, then throw it aside. Any ex-pouch dependent

joeys leap in panic into the night and die of exposure. The kangaroo is gutted

and hung on the side of the truck. They jump back into the warm truck and drive

on looking for more kangaroos....

This shooting is a cruel and gruesome

blood bath.

 

 

The ACT government has

told us that they had to finish the shooting before

the end of this month, we are not sure why.

 

 

 

 

 

For more information please visit

 

 

www.kangarooslaughter.com

 

 

Please make sure to make

comments in the guestbook of this website. We will use your

feedback in our campaign.

 

Please email and call Chief Minister Jon Stanhope urgently.

EMAIL: stanhope

PHONE: (02) 6205 0104

international +61+2+6205 0104

FAX (02) 62050433

international +61+2+62050433

 

MAIL:Chief Minister Jon Stanhope

ACT Legislative

Assembly

PO Box 1020 Canberra

ACT 2601

 

Ask Mr Stanhope to:

* stop

the shooting because it is cruel and unsustainable

* use humane non-lethal methods for kangaroo management

* Do not allow the commercial kangaroo industry to use the dead kangaroos for

commercial profit. By doing this they increase the demand for kangaroo products

and the industry gets a foot hold into the ACT/South NSW region.

* Develop cooperative strategies with adjacent landholders to prevent erosion

from overgrazed rural properties reaching the dam.

Questions you may like to ask the Minister

include,

*Does the Googong Dam

have a written Management Plan?

*Why haven’t

adjacent farmers been required to have settlement

ponds to stop sheep manure, chemicals, and effluent reaching the Dam?

*Why was the kill started in secret?

*Why was the community

not consulted?

*Does he support the

recommended method of killing the joeys as outlined in the Code of Practice?

 

As NSW National Parks issued the Permit please also email Minister Bob Debus on

bob.debus

and request to cancel the permit.

 

If you live abroad, please contact the Australian Embassy in

your country and register your complain. http://www.ausmaps.com/embassy.htm and

www.ausmaps.com/embassy2.htm

 

 

 

 

 

Just recently Australia launched

push for visitors with hundreds of millions dollars on promotional campaign

advertising Australia as a tourist destination and ironically using the image of a kangaroo

as a draw card!

 

 

For

more info on press releases abroad please visit http://www.savethekangaroo.com/newsarchive/20040722.shtml

If

you have your own website it would be great if you could include some info on this alert.

 

 

Please act now. Every moment is crucial.

 

 

 

 

 

 

" your silence = your condonence "

 

 

 

 

 

 

- for kangaroos

 

 

Teresa

 

 

__________________

Dr Teresa Buss-Carden

Australians for Wildlife

Subcommittee of WLPA

www.wlpa.org

 

 

********************************************************************************

 

 

For more info on kangaroo please

visit

 

 

http://www.awpc.org.au

 

 

http://www.savethekangaroo.com

 

 

http://www.kangaroo-protection-coalition.org