Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

Kent animal campaigners have been out protesting at Ramsgate port a lot this week.  UK sheep are being exported by Dutchman Onderwater (a convicted criminal) in order to make him money for the Eid ritual slaughter festival very soon.  The British government and Kent police are still doing all they can to help the exporters; but the government also talks of going it alone and introducing a ban on the trade to Europe once the UK has left the EU.  Who knows what will happen ?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-36854529

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-26178601

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-21151282

http://www.ciwf.org.uk/our-campaigns/live-animal-transport/?gclid=CIvO_s2ogs8CFUgo0wodw08GZw

Here is the blog for one of the export protests this week.

This is blog for today’s debacle xxxxx

After last night’s long wait and all the emotion involved we arrived at Ramsgate Nethercourt Roundabout at 9.30am to be told there was once again a problem and the trucks might not be here until 2/3pm this afternoon.

Angry and tired, tried to find out the problem and was told the vet that was to sign the release paperwork for the supervised loading of 4 transporters at Daventry had been called away on an emergency and wouldn’t be available until 12 noon making the earliest the vehicles could get to Ramsgate 3/4pm.

We found out that two other Lorries had been loaded earlier and I objected to the sheep on these two having to wait all that time. Onderwater wanted to unload these two and reload when the Daventry ones were ready. Again I was horrified. Unloading and loading are the most stressful times and these sheep had had enough.

Imagine my surprise when Animal Health, YES ANIMAL HEALTH, also decided this was wrong too and served a movement restraint on the Daventry sheep and told Onderwater to let the other two loaded vehicles come to Ramsgate and sail on the Joline today. The other four were to sail tomorrow.

Well done Animal Health for doing your job for once.

The two loaded vehicles set out for Ramsgate about 10.15am and arrived at the port at about 1.30pm.

A few of us stayed and the rest went off for cups of tea etc, luckily it has been a beautiful day.

When the Lorries arrived there was the usual huge amount of police and they were only paused briefly.

We reported legs sticking out of the middle tier of the second vehicle, two who only use the Joline for the Eid festival trade, and, of course, when looked at there was nothing wrong. Still we tried and, as I’ve said before, if they did find anything wrong in the port I would probably faint.

Very frustrated after the long wait as the police were climbing back into their vans a large number of brave people did a peaceful impromptu sit down protest , blocking the main road. Even I was taken by surprise but it was very peaceful and it stopped the traffic back into the town  and out towards the bypass road. The police came running back and had to go to each person and ask them several times to move. When it looked like it was getting serious on any one person I went and encourage them to stand up as there is no point in getting arrested and their actions had achieved exactly what they wanted.

The whole sit down took about 10/15 minutes but what an impact and they had still to be moved off the road which they were slowly. Thank you for such a surprise performance, just shows you can still surprise.

The ship sailed at 14.17hrs into a high wind and had to hug the coast. when she reached opposite St. Margaret’s Bay at 17.15hrs when she turned to cross the channel and the full force of the wind hit her. One of our supporters watched her with powerful binoculars pitching and rolling with large waves breaking over the lorry parked in the bow of the ship. The waves went right over this vehicle drenching the poor sheep with salty water. obviously the exporters couldn’t care less.

The next sailing is tomorrow between 1 and 2pm Lorries due at 1pm, 13.00hrs.

There is also another sailing to make up for today’s upset on SUNDAY morning, Lorries at 9am. As this is the day before the 4th anniversary of the death of 46 sheep in Ramsgate port in 2012 we wondered if you would like to bring flowers and we will festoon the roundabout and the bushes outside the allotments with floral tributes to these poor animals.

Finally, just to make you laugh, last night Onderwater was in such a rush to get going they were raising the stern door and moving as the last lorry was still backing on the ship. It was suddenly noticed that a man ran down the ramp towards the ship gesticulating and shouting but no one heard him.

He was left stood watching the ship and scratching his head as he was one of the drivers and in their rush they had left him behind.

He had to go to Dover and cross on the normal ferries!!!!!!!

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