Posted on April 3, 2017 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
3/4/17. Today we have received the following letter from the EU regarding one of our petitions and the question of stray animals in Serbia as well as the long distance transportation of live animals within the EU and to Turkey.
You can see a full copy of the EU response here:
We are disappointed but not at all surprised by the wording of the EU letter. Basically, it does very little apart from pass the blame onto everyone else apart from the EU. As we have always said, the EU is very good at talking the talk; but when it comes to enforcing its own legislation, then the EU is very much outside the enforcement envelope.
On sheets 2 and 3 of the letter you can see we have identified a few statements in the margin using Orange.
Sheet 2 – Notice To Members.
“Most of the issues raised in the petition with regard the management of stray dog populations are not under EU competence”.
Serbia is currently an EU ‘Candidate Country’; getting ready to become an EU member state. In order to become an EU member state; any hopeful nation has to show it is in full compliance of the EU requirement of showing that it is enforcing the ‘rule of law’ – that it is enforcing its own national legislation within its nation. As we have shown for the past 10 years or more, Serbia is NOT applying the rule of law as written in existing Serbian legislation when it comes to the welfare of (mainly stray) dogs and cats.
We wanted to make this issue of great importance to the EU Enlargement Commission when considering Serbia’s application to join the EU. You can see further information about Serbian legislation for stray animals by visiting https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/about-serbian-animals/
But we are disappointed to simply be given the statement that “stray dog populations are not under EU competence”. We feel that this is action by the EU to simply pass the monitoring game back to individual member states as it always does; who as we have seen in other work (live transport); cannot enforce the EU regulations within their own country. Why will the EU not introduce stray animal legislation ? – because stray animals do not earn money for member states the same way as meat / live animals do when they are transported to other nations for slaughter. I guess you could say it is all a question of economics and finance – and stray animals come second !
Effectively; this EU letter gives the green light to Serbia to continue killing stray animals in whatever way it wants even thought they should be given protection under existing Serbian national legislation, as decreed by the Serbian Constitutional Court many years ago (2005). Put simply, the EU will be happy to take Serbia in as a new EU member state; whilst at the same time ignoring the fact that it does not comply with the EU member state rules of adhering to national law; whilst at the same time continuing to kill animals in the most barbaric and illegal ways.
Moving on to sheet 3 and the issue of the live transport of animals. Conclusion – Here we read that the EU ‘has launched a 3 year pilot project to develop and disseminate the best practices for animal transport’. We are extremely disappointed to read that the EU Commission does not envisage revising the current EU legislation on animal transport but will continue to assist member states in their efforts for its better enforcement. The words in reality mean nothing.
Please read the excellent report by Animals Angels below – ‘The Myth of Enforcement of Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 on the protection of animals during transport’.
As we have said so many times in the past; we have ‘head in the sand’ people like Mr Van Goethem and associated EU Commissioners; who should be changing the regulations regularly to better animal welfare and move away form the continual abuses which has been provided to them in so many forms over so many years. Here are just a few examples:
So in conclusion, we have a ‘system’ called the EU – it brags; talks loud and posts so much on its internet service to make anyone in the world think that the system is fantastic. The reality is, as shown by activists out on the road; and when they / we try to relate failing and their non enforcement to EU legislation, the EU authorities turn the other way and put their heads deep down into the sand. The EU dopes not want to be shown that anything is wrong in its ‘perfect, paper system’.
Last week the UK triggered Article 50 – we are going to get out and away from these people who are paid big salaries to do things; but whom in reality do nothing. By leaving and going it alone, the UK will show the world (and the EU) that things are much better when you take back control. It is the UK against 27 other member states – so we shall see exactly how much control the EU masters have on all their members when Brexit negotiations actually get under way.
Posted on March 28, 2017 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Well here we are in the week when (on Wed 29/3) the UK Prime Minister Mrs. May goes to Brussels and formally presents the EU with Article 50 – the formal declaration that the UK is going to leave the EU.Many of us are very happy about this – the UK will get its independence back from the shackles of ‘do nothing’ Brussels, and all our laws will be changed and re vamped into better UK laws by British MPs in the UK House of Commons – not by un-elected self important; the ‘do nothings’ at the EU in Brussels.
On the animal welfare front already there are many national groups within the UK who are pushing the UK government hard for updated and better legislation when we formally quit the EU.Something we have said all along – when we go it alone; animal legislation will get better than the false promises made under useless legislation in Brussels.Article 50 presentation then gives the EU and the UK TWO YEARS to hold very important talks and to establish the future trade agreements etc which we hope will benefit both the EU and the UK.But the main thing is that we get our own legislation back in the hands of the UK – not with jobsworths in Brussels who always say they can do nothing even when it goes directly against the legislation of EU law.
On the issue of live animal transport which we do know a little about, having been involved for around 30 years; work is already under way to get a complete ban on the export of live animals from the UK.At the moment, hands have been / are being tied by the ‘we cannot do anything’ bunch at Brussels, despite them being presented with overwhelming evidence that the implementation of EU Regulation 1/2005 on the so called ‘protection’ of live animals in transport simply does not work and is not being enforced.This is supposedly the main EU Regulation to ‘protect’ animals on the road.The reality is, it is joke legislation – never enforced and not wanted to be by the Brussels leaders.
Ok, so the situation is if the sand headers at Brussels will not do anything to help animal welfare, then the nation of the UK will.Hence just one of many reasons why we are getting out of the EU, taking back our own control and fighting hard now for a live animal export ban.We hope that by early fighting, new legislation for a complete ban willbe in force under new UK law on the day (in 2 years time) when we formally leave the EU behind and make and enforce our own laws once again.
Here is a link to a report from the very respected Christa Blanke – the Founder of ‘Animals Angels’ – an organisation which specialises in exposing the cruelty of long distance animal transport across the EU and beyond.
Entitled – The Myth of Enforcement of Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 on the protection of animals during transport – the report gives a superb insight into exactly why the EU legislation is simply not even worth the paper that it is written on – and boy have we also not said enough about this over the years?All the welfare froups and their investigators have shown it time and time again – and still the EU refuses to act on the pile of evidence presented to them.
Also, as we have presented so many times in our posts, the EU is, for example, doing absolutely nothing regarding the situation for live animals being exported from the EU to Turkey.Have a look at these videos which show the actual real situation obtained by actual, real investigators; not ivory tower jobsworths sitting behind desks in Brussels:
So; things like the above report go to Brussels; and endless video evidence like that shown above also goes too Brussels; and then what do we get back from Brussels ? – word from Mr Van Goethem and the rest of the dire team that ‘there is nothing they can do’ – they hold their hands up and take no action to enforce the rules, THEIR EU RULES; whilst every day, live animals continue to suffer. On the endless trips of cruelty and despairAnother joke is that Mr Van Goethem claims to be a veterinary – yes, a vet ! – are not these people supposed to look after the welfare of animals rather than dismiss the cruelty that is presented to them ?
The UK getting out of the EU is not going to change everything; but it will show the EU the strength of feeling over issues that they simply dismiss whilst shouting that they can do nothing.If the UK can get out of Europe, take back its own laws and stop the export of live animals; then so can other EU member states.But do they have the guts to do it or will they just keep on obtaining information and being continually met with the ‘we can do nothing’ shouts from the Brussels brigade over the next five, ten years or more ?.
For Brits, this is not good enough – the EU has failed the citizens of the UK when they have presented endless info and petitions etc about the horrors of live animal exports.The EU has ignored the facts.Ok, so now we ignore the EU and we go it alone, making new laws just within the UK and enforcing them.Maybe the EU will learn from this, or will ivory tower EU continue to have its head in the sand as usual, ignoring the evidence and the campaigns for enforcement of ‘EU’ legislation within Europe !
Here is a new link, one of many, that calls to get the UK government to ensure live exports are banned when we formally leave the EU.Please sign and pass on – already we have over 29,500 sigs from UK citizens.Note that this can only be signed by UK citizens, as we hope the issue will be discussed in a UK parliament which represents the UK people.
Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) 