Young activists say that none of the complaints filed by animal rights activists have been considered by the police lately. Police refused to act on the appeals despite the evidence: documents, testimonies, photos, and video proofs. This became the reason for about a dozen of animal rights activists in Donetsk to come to the oblast police office and demand to stop the killing of animals.
“We are not naive citizens and we do not think that one such rally can change the world for the better and eradicate the violence. But we hope that our rallies will ensure the compliance with the law. We would like to prevent cruelty towards animals and also children who see it all. Even with so many people it makes sense to go on such a rally. Each reminder to the officials of their duties may give results,” said activist Anastasia Balabanova.
Before the building of the police office the animal rights activists spread a piece of red fabric that symbolized the death of animals, a photo of a killed dog and two roses with black ribbon tied around them. Three activists depicted three states: not talking, not listening, and not seeing. In such a way they showed the reaction of local authorities and the police to the events that take place in oblast.
“We will keep organizing such rallies until our police and our local authorities start obeying the law ‘On Protection of Animals.’ We cannot just watch animals suffer. The Constitution of Ukraine protects people’s right to health. But the fact that dogs are being poisoned on our streets is a violation of all regulations. We can’t tell how cynical and criminal-minded should a person be to tolerate such actions. The authorities and the police closed their ears, eyes, and mouths. For how long will this last? We will demand that the offenders should be found and punished. We demand the regional police to take measures that would prevent poisoning of animals, to find the dog-hunters, and to block the website where they contemplate murdering dogs. Our next demand is to fulfill the order of Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, in which he appealed to the heads of oblast administrations with the requirement to comply with the law ‘On Protection of Animals’ and act on all the appeals filed by people,” said the organizers of the rally.
The activists also demanded to see the statement made by the oblast administration after the last rally of the animal rights activists. In that statement the authorities were to recommend the police to actively respond to requests and appeals of the citizens. However, the animal rights activists claim that they never saw such statement.
