In early October, the Save Animal Movement Pakistan held a seminar in Multan, Pakistan, to celebrate both World Animal Day (October 4) and International Vegetarian Week (October 1-7). Held at the Hotel Shelton, the event featured many speakers who spoke eloquently on behalf of animals in Pakistan, advocating protection for animals of the land, sea, and air.
The President of the Animal Save Movement Pakistan, Kalid Mahmood Qurashi, set out the goal of establishing a vegetarian society, which would both lead to a healthier diet for humans and would also honor the ways of nature by “creating harmony between human beings and animals.”
The seminar covered issues for both wild and domestic animals, such as the welfare of working animals; horses, camels and donkeys — as well as wildlife needing protection from hunting, so they can be free to follow their natural migratory paths, living out their natural lives, safe from hunting.
Mr. Mustafa Cuhan Adv. recalled the great migration of birds from Siberia which has taken place from time immemorial, affirming that hunting these birds must be banned.
Mr. Allah Nawaz, Durrani Chairman, ASMP, asked central and provincial governments to allocate funding in their budgets for the protection, care, and well-being of animals.
In closing, Mr. Qurashi called for dialogue with the authorities to set up ways to monitor the conditions of working animals, especially in terms of the loads they are carrying and for action to stop the smuggling of wild birds.
He added, “All life is precious, all want to live in peace. Animals are our friends. We believe that all animals are beautiful and should be treated with love and respect, and thank GOD, we are vegetarian. Animals have the power of speech. They even understand our speech. But we don’t have the power of understanding their speech. I wonder why people still call them speechless, because animals speak, but we don’t understand, which doesn’t mean that they don’t have language and communicate amongst themselves.”
Photo: © Maurie Hill / Dreamstime.com / Cows in a marketplace in Rajasthan in western India.
To visit the Facebook page of Animal Save Movement Pakistan, click here.
Art, animals, and the earth 