Malay Mail on the assault of animal lovers

Monday, September 17 2007

Hit repeatedly for recording proceedings
By MARIAM THANY




ANIMAL lover Lim Ann Nee (left), who was among those who attended a meeting with Selayang Municipal Council on the dog-catching competition at the council’s offi ce last Friday, claims that a council representative knocked her on the head repeatedly with a book.
She claims that the alleged attack happened outside the MPS building when a man caught her fi lming with her camcorder.

“I was not aware that a man was staring at me. He shouted: ‘Apa you tangkap?’ (What are you recording?) “I switched off my camcorder but when he started to walk towards me, I knew something bad was going to happen and quickly switched it back on to record everything.” She claimed that her alleged assailant used a booklet he was holding and hit her for almost 10 minutes.

“Before he left, he shouted ‘Awak stupid!’ (You’re an idiot) and ‘Semua sini pergi mampus!’ (All of you can go ahead and die!),” said Lim.

Lim lodged a report at the Sentul police station the same day.“A SELAYANG Municipal Council representative knocked me on the head with a book,” claimed animal lover Lim Ann Nee, who was among those who attended a meeting with the council on the dog-catching competition at its offi ce, last Friday.

The meeting was attended by Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Malaysian Animal Assisted Therapy Association (PetPositve), Malaysian Animal Rights and Welfare Society (Roar), Malaysian Association for Responsible Pet Ownership (Marpo) and the Coalition of Animal Lovers Malaysia (Calm).

“I was standing outside the MPS building with other animal lovers, waiting for the meeting to be over.

“When PetPositive representatives Anthony Thanasayan and Roar president N.

Surendran (Surin) came out from the conference, we were surprised and started to speculate as to what could have happened.

“I started to film what was happening with my camcorder, including the directors leaving the office,” she said.

“I was not aware that a man was staring at me. He shouted ‘Apa you tangkap?’ (What are you recording?) “I switched off my camcorder but when he started to walk towards me, I knew something bad was going to happen and quickly switched it back on to record everything.

“The man realised that I was recording him, and he hit my camcorder.” She claimed that her alleged assailant used a booklet he was holding and hit her for almost 10 minutes.

“He wanted to hit my head but failed because I was leaning and moving back to protect myself.

“Before he left, he shouted at me ‘Awak stupid and semua sini pergi mampus’ (You’re an idiot and all of you can go ahead and die),” said Lim.

Lim lodged a report at the Sentul police station the same day.

The Malay Mail contacted MPS president Zainal Abidin Azim on the matter, but he refused to comment.

“Since it’s already a police case, I leave it to them to investigate,” he said.

Zainal also denied knowing the alleged assailant and why he was at the meeting.

Calm representative Natasha Fernz, when contacted, said she witnessed the incident.

She also claimed that the man had also disrupted the meeting when they (the NGOs) complained that the meeting room, located on the second floor of MPS’s old building, was not conducive for Thanasayan, who is wheelchair bound.

They requested that the venue be changed to another room in MPS’s new building, which was better-equipped with facilities for the disabled.

She claimed that when the request was made, Lim’s alleged assailant and several other council representatives made snide remarks.

Natasha said after they moved to the new meeting room, they asked the council if the dog-catching competition would be cancelled.

She said that when State Assemblyman Datuk Tang See Hang replied that the competition would not be cancelled, all the NGOs except for representative from the SPCA, decided to walk out.

“Some of the MPS representatives started to shout at us, asking us to sit down. This was when Lim’s alleged attacker tried to stop Thanasayan from leaving, but he was held back by several people.

He even threatened to hit Thanasayan,” claimed Natasha.

She added that the incident continued outside when she saw the man hitting Lim.

She said Thanasayan and Surin had also lodged a police report on the incident.

Copyright © 2007 The Malay Mail Online. All rights reserved.

StarMetro MPS Scraps Contest

M E T R O Saturday September 15, 2007


MPS scraps contest

By STUART MICHAEL

stuartmichaelstar@gmail.com

The meeting between Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) and animal rights groups yesterday has brought the controversy pertaining to the controversial Dog-catching Comp-etition to an end.

A consensus was reached yesterday with MPS cancelling the competition and agreeing to work with Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and other animal rights groups to deal with the stray dog problems in the municipality.

The meeting, held at the MPS building, was attended by state exco member Datuk Tang See Hang and council president Zainal Abidin Azim who met some 30 representatives from SPCA, Malaysian Animals Rights and Welfare Society, Pet-positive and other animal rights groups.


Fruitful meeting: Tang explaining the decision during the meeting.
As Tang and Zainal entered the conference room on the ninth floor of the MPS building, there were people waiting outside the building holding placards wanting the dog-catching competition stopped.

As Tang was seated at the conference room on the ninth floor, SPCA representative N. Suren-dran, who is also Malaysian Animals Rights and Welfare Society (Roar) pro-tem committee president, demanded that the dog-catching competition be scrapped.

Tang asked him to calm down and said the issue had to be discussed rationally.

Surendran together with Petpositive president Anthony Thanasayan and Malaysian Association for Responsible Pet Ownership president Dr John Satyamoorthy then left in a huff.

Tang and Zainal then listened to the views, comments and explanations from SPCA chairperson Christine Chin who acted as the spokesperson for the group.

After about one hour of discussions, Tang announced that the competition would be cancelled.

As soon as Tang announced this, representatives of animal rights organisations, including Chin, clapped while there were many smiles around the conference room.


For the animals: Surendran (right) and others protesting outside the MPS building.
Chin explained the influx of stray dogs was due to the people who abandoned them and not the dogs.

“Dog will breed as usual in the wild and we are not asking for a stop to dog catching but it must be done in a humane way.

“Pet owners should be responsible for their actions and be given hefty fines for abandoning pets.

“We should also educate children and residents not to leave their dogs but spay them to help curb this problem,” said Chin.

Tang also said he is looking at implementing microchips in dogs to track them down and identify the owners should the dog be caught roaming.

Copyright © 1995-2007 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd (Co No 10894-D)
Managed by I.Star.

Petpositive attacked

Saturday, September 15, 2007, 09.31 PM

NST Online » Local News
2007/09/15

Dog-catching contest called off
By : Azira Shaharuddin


KUALA LUMPUR: The Selayang Municipal Council’s controversial dog-catching competition targeting strays was called off yesterday but not before an exchange of invectives between those who wanted it and those who were against.

Finally, the "nays" had their way.

They comprised the Selangor Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), Malaysian Animal Rights and Welfare Society (Roar), Malaysia Animal-assisted Therapy Association (Petpositive) and Malaysian Association for Responsible Pet Ownership (Marpo).

Selangor executive councillor Datuk Tang See Hang made the decision after listening to officials of the council and the Department of Veterinary Services and the SPCA at a meeting at Menara MPS.

However, the catching of stray dogs will continue.

The meeting started on an antagonistic note, with both the Selayang Municipal Council members and representatives of the associations shouting at one another.

Those from the associations wanted the competition to be called off immediately.

But when they learnt that the meeting was held to hear their views, some of them decided to leave.

These included Petpositive president Anthony Thanasayan, who is wheelchair bound, and Roar president N. Surendran.

As they got up, shouts of kurang ajar were heard, and a man, identified as Rasheed Sultan Afshur, confronted them. A shouting match ensued.

"He came rushing at us as if to hit us. Some people stopped him," Surendran told reporters.

As they were walking out, someone called out "gangster".

After some time, calm was restored, and the meeting resumed with the council officials, four representatives of the SPCA and a representative of Petpositive.

Surendran and Thanasayan lodged a report at the Sentul police station.

Tang said the council would continue to catch stray dogs with help from the SPCA.

He outlined five measures in the fight against stray dogs, including having 10 to 20 volunteers from each residents’ association in the Selayang area to catch strays.

Dog owners will also be taught to be more responsible, and heavier penalties will be considered for those who abandon their pets.

Tang said the council also planned to set up a spay-neuter clinic for pets.
Copyright © 2007 NST Online. All rights reserved.

Letters Malaysiakini: MPS on rabid witch hunt

Rabid witch-hunt against strays shocking
Anthony Thanasayan
Sep 13, 07 1:50pm Adjust font size:

I refer to the malaysiakini report Protest held over MPS' dog-hunt. Have we lost our marbles? How utterly disgraceful it was to read about the Selayang Municipal Council’s dog- catching competition which has been opened to residents in the area to participate with attractive sums as high as RM15,000 as prizes for the winners.


And if that wasn’t egregious enough, what a shock it was to see an elected assemblyman throwing his support behind such an insane cause by having a photo of him in a local newspaper smiling as he ‘catches’ a cardboard mock-up of a stray dog.

One minute, we seem to be doing the most noble thing by bestowing historic medals on disc- sniffing dogs such as Lucky and Flo recently. And the next, we’re all out in a rabid witch-hunt against stray animals instead of responding to them in a calculated, matured, responsible and loving manner.

The MPS should be putting the competition money to better use such as to educate residents about how to be more responsible and caring for pets and animals in order to prevent them from ending up as strays.

There are also enough animal-welfare organisations for them to consult and work together with instead of coming up with ridiculous measures to address the stray problem.

What kind of values and lessons are we teaching our children by such ruthless competitions other than to say that animals do not deserve any respect and that we as human beings have the supreme authority to do whatever we please with them with money as the only object and criteria?

Our local councils should respect all dogs whether they are pedigrees or strays on the streets. They should come up with laws that are not only kind and fair to pets and their owners and instead of ludicrous dog-catching competitions, come up with local awards for dogs and their owners who make good examples as human and animal citizens of our society.

Special awards and financial assistance (such as the competition’s money) should be given by local councils to the many Malaysians who volunteer their time, money and even their lives to rescue unwanted, distressed and ‘wild’ dogs from the streets and to place them in loving and permanent homes.

The writer is president, Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association (PetPositive).


Copyright © 1999-2007 Mkini Dotcom Sdn Bhd. All rights reserved.

NST on Dr Toyo's remarks

Thursday, September 13, 2007, 09.20 PM
NST Online » Local News
2007/09/13

MB: Review dog-catching competition
By : V. Shankar Ganesh

SHAH ALAM: The state government has ordered the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) to take another look at its controversial dog-catching competition.

Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo said the reward amount was unreasonable and too high.

He said efforts to reduce the number of stray dogs in Selayang was the common responsibility of the residents and the local authority.

"We understand that MPS organised the competition in good faith as it hoped to attract the locals’ attention in solving the stray dogs problem.

"However, the prize money is too high and we want them to take another look at the competition."

He said this to the press after chairing the weekly state executive council meeting here yesterday.

He was responding to questions raised on the issue following calls from various quarters to scrap the competition as it could lead to cruelty in catching the dogs and also theft of dogs from homes.

The competition rules state that residents’ associations would be given RM20 for each stray brought in.

Winners will be picked every six months. To qualify for the three top prizes of RM15,000, RM13,000 and RM11,000, more than 150 dogs must be caught within that period.

The residents’ association that catches the most strays would get a consolation prize of RM2,000 if the target of 150 dogs was not met.

MPS came under heavy fire from various quarters for organising the competition.


Copyright © 2007 NST Online. All rights reserved.

animal groups protest at mps

M E T R O Central
Wednesday September 12, 2007


Animal rights groups protest against dog catching competition

By STUART MICHAEL and GERALDINE JEREMIAH
Photo by STUART MICHAEL

About 50 people comprising representatives from various animal rights organisations and animal lovers went to the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) in Bandar Baru Selayang on Monday to pass a memorandum to its president Zainal Abidin Azim. The memorandum called for an immediate end to the dog-catching competition organised by the council.

Holding placards that condemned cruelty to animals, the group led by Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) chairperson Christine Chin, waited for Zainal to accept the memorandum but since he was on leave, MPS public relations officer Helda Syima Abu Talab accepted it on his behalf.

Upon receiving the memorandum, Helda assured the group that it would be handed over to Zainal and a meeting would be arranged soon with SPCA.


Stop this cruelty: Representatives from various animal rights group and animal lovers waiting outside the MPS building.
Despite it being a peaceful gathering, some outsiders were seen shouting insults at the group in order to provoke them, but after delivering the memorandum, the group dispersed quietly.

Chin said that apart from requesting for an end to the competition, the memorandum also contained request for highly effective spaying or neuter initiatives and fines against irresponsible pet owners who abandon their pets.

“We also want an implementation of a smart, humane and effective legislation to promote responsible pet ownership,'' she said.

Apart from Chin, the memorandum was also signed by Malaysian Animal Rights and Welfare Association president N. Surendran, Petpositive president Anthony Thanasayan and Malaysian Association for Responsible Pet Ownership president Dr John Satyamoorthy, who were also present at the gathering.

Asked about Rawang assemblyman Datuk Tang See Hang's proposed meeting with SPCA, Chin said that she had not received any letter or call from Tang's office about the meeting.

Dog handler and professional groomer Noraini Rozaiti Mahamud, 35, when questioned on the issue of the strays posing a threat to residents said that dogs reacted aggressively only when they were threatened and dogs were not likely to attack unprovoked.

“This competition would inherently attract over-zealous residents without experience in handling dogs. This could result in someone getting injured and the dogs being blamed and crucified for attacking a person,'' she said.

Retired Selayang Hospital head nurse Kamala Chelliah, 57 said that she read about the Dog Catching Competition in the papers and turned up to show her dissatisfaction.

Kamala felt that the authorities could come up with a better solution to address this matter.

From StarMetro Mail:
Stop this disgusting contest!
There are humane ways to control strays

Copyright © 1995-2007 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd (Co No 10894-D)
Managed by I.Star.

MPS protest on Malaysiakini

Protest held over MPS' dog-hunt
Andrew Ong
Sep 11, 07 2:32pm Adjust font size:

Some 50 animal lovers staged a peaceful protest outside the Selayang Municipal Council headquarters today against an ongoing stray dog catching competition.

The protest followed widespread criticism against MPS which is offering up to RM11,000 as a grand prize every six months to resident committees which nab the most number of stray dogs.

Led by four NGOs, the protestors chanted “Stop the hunt” and “Stop the cruelty” while holding placards condemning the competition.

Later, they handed over a protest memorandum and some 2,000 signatures condemning the competition to a representative of MPS president Zainal Abidin Azim.

The public relations officer who accepted the memorandum on Zainal’s behalf said the matter would be discussed in the near future but declined to offer further comment.

Speaking to reporters later, Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) chairperson Christine Chin said untrained civilians are unable to deal with strays and the competition instills wrong values in the public.

“Local authorities have the resources to deal with strays. This competition is not the way to do it,” she said, adding that local authorities should instead impose fines on irresponsible pet owners and encourage spaying of pets.

'Pro opposition'

In their memorandum, the groups said that spaying of pets has proven to be an effective method in controlling stray animal population.

The groups also called for stiff penalties against those who dump their pets. They cite Singapore as an example where pet abandonment is an offence punishable by a one-year imprisonment and a S$10,000 fine.

The memorandum was initiated by the SPCA and endorsed by the Malaysian Association for Responsible Pet Ownership (Marpo), Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association (Petpositive) and the Malaysian Animal Rights and Welfare Association (Roar).

The press conference by the four NGOs was later punctuated by heckling from an unidentified individual (left) who was seen mingling with MPS enforcement officers.

The heckler loudly accused the groups present of being “opposition supporters” and that they were inconsiderate to victims of stray dog attacks.

Several protestors responded in anger towards the heckler but were held back by other protestors.





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