Click HERE to learn more and take action: https://koreandogs.org/sister-city-namyangju-harryda/

Video: Dog farms in Namyangju, South Korea.

Härryda Municipal Director Peter Lönn: Tell your Sister City, Namyangju, South Korea, that you are opposed to the torture and consumption of dogs and cats.

Härryda became Sister City with Namyangju, South Korea, in 2020. This relationship was undoubtedly formed in the spirit of friendship and mutual economic benefit. And, while Härryda would have expected to learn about the differences in cultural practices of the Namyangju citizens, we feel confident that you would have hesitated to form such a Sister City relationship had you known about the aberrant and cruel practices routinely carried out in the dog and cat meat trades in Namyangju and all over South Korea. Lucrative but illegal trades carry on unchallenged, with no enforcement of the laws and no punishment for those violating them.

South Korea is home to global companies such as Hyundai, Kia, Samsung, LG, Daewoo, SK, and POSCO, which is why it is so shocking that an estimated 2.5 million dogs are tortured and slaughtered every year within South Korea because of the greed of dog eaters and the dog meat industry. Most Koreans, who don’t participate in this offensive trade, show a profound indifference by doing nothing at all to stop it.

We know how loyal and faithful are our dogs around the world, and we ask a lot of them. They serve us in innumerable ways: farm work, war work, police, and guard duties, search and rescue, help for the disabled, guiding and guardianship, and, of course, as our loving and trusting companions.

Dogs were first domesticated many thousands of years ago. They want so much to be part of our human family that they have learned to understand our gestures and our language - the language of another species, which shows remarkable willingness and intelligence.

In Namyangju, there are countless dog farms, slaughterhouses, markets, and restaurants where dogs, who have been tortured their entire lives, end up being slaughtered in the most inhumane ways, such as by electrocution, hanging, or beating, and are then thrown into boiling water – sometimes while they are still alive. In many places, dogs are being killed in full view of other terrified, caged dogs, often in public and daylight. In addition, many abandoned and stolen former pets end up in this industry and are subject to the same cruelty.

We ask you to please watch the videos from South Korea’s dog meat industry:

Part 1 of 2: https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ

Part 2 of 2: https://youtu.be/ivHffcM5B6w

https://koreandogs.org/jtbc-news-electric-tortured-in-cages/

Forest fire in Uljin burns dogs imprisoned in dog meat farms: https://youtu.be/mh1lEGt2gjU

https://youtu.be/GLLeI_XFNPg

There are laws in South Korea against selling dogs and cats for human consumption, yet these laws are routinely and blatantly ignored.

We believe there must surely be some social responsibility by the representatives of one city to take a stand against any wrongdoing being sanctioned or ignored by their Sister City. As such, we ask that you please urge Namyangju Mayor Cho Kwang-Han to take action and to state that Härryda and its citizens demand Namyangju issue an official document mandating the enforcement by its government officials, police, and judges of the following existing Korean laws:

Unauthorized processing of food waste fed to dogs in the meat trade violates the Wastes Control Act, Article 15-2, Article 25, Section 3. Suppliers of food waste and transporters of food waste to dog meat farms are violating this regulation.

Food waste fed to dogs in the dog meat trade violates the Control of Livestock and Fish Feed Act, Article 14, Section 1 & 2. The unauthorized collection of food waste and the act of feeding it to dogs in the meat trade violates this regulation.

Excrement and resulting environmental damage produced as a by-product of the illegal dog meat farm violate the Act on the Management and Use of Livestock Excreta Article 11. The excrement produced at dog meat farms causes environmental damage to the immediate and surrounding area.

The act of slaughtering dogs for human consumption violates the Animal Protection Act Article 8, Section 1, Clause 4. The act of killing a dog without a justifiable ground – such as out of necessity for veterinary treatment or in circumstances of immediate threat, harm, or damage to human life or property- is a violation.

The slaughter of dogs by electrocution violates the Animal Protection Act, Article 8, Section 1, Clause 1. Inflicting injury or death to any animal by the following means: battery by tools, exposure to drugs, exposure to extreme heat or fire, electrocution, and drowning is subject to legal punishment. Therefore, the routine slaughter of dogs by butchers and farmers by these methods violates the Act. Further, electrocution as a method of slaughter is internationally recognized as an inherently cruel method of slaughter and banned globally.

The slaughter of dogs from an unauthorized slaughterhouse violates the Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act, Article 7 Section 1. The Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act states that dogs are officially recognized and classified as “animals” that are “prohibited from being slaughtered and distributed as food for human consumption.” Therefore, those vendors operating dog slaughterhouses are operating outside of the parameters of the law and in violation of the law.

The slaughter of dogs for consumption violates the Animal Protection Act, Article 10. The Act intends to ensure that no animal is slaughtered in a cruel or revolting manner and shall be free from unnecessary pain, fear, or stress during slaughter. Therefore, the only humane way of slaughtering dogs would be by euthanasia (lethal injection). All currently practiced slaughter methods by butchers, farmers, and traders exclude euthanasia as a method of slaughter. Therefore they are all in breach of this Act. This is also a violation of the Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act Article 7 Section 1 Clause 2. According to the Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act, the slaughter of animals for their own consumption is allowed only for the livestock animals that are publically announced as classification of livestock in the Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act and dogs are not classified here.

The display and sale of dog carcasses in traditional outdoor markets violate the Food Sanitation Act, Article 4, 5. Violation of laws banning the sale of harmful food due to the contamination from the unsanitary and illegal slaughter of the animal and display of the dog carcass. For example, dog carcasses are routinely contaminated by microorganisms that cause human diseases and food poisoning, leading to severe and life-threatening health complications. There are also strict laws that ban the sale of meat from sick animals; because there is no quality control or proper monitoring of slaughter practices in the dog meat trade, violation of these laws is likely happening routinely.

Dog meat restaurants’ sale of dog meat soup made with dog carcasses from an unknown source violates the Food Sanitation Act Article 44 Section 1 Clause 1. Uninspected livestock products must not be transported, stored, displayed, sold, or used for manufacturing or processing food for human consumption.

Please refer to the legal information regarding dog meat consumption in South Korea published by KARA (Korea Animal Rights Advocates): http://koreandogs.org/kara-publishes-legal-information-booklet-ending-dog-meat-consumption/

We believe these demands are in line with the spirit and goals of Sister cities to establish friendly communications in the areas of tourism, commerce, cultural exchange, and public health.

The United States House of Representatives has formally passed H.Res. 401, " Calls for an end to the dog and cat meat industry and urges all nations to outlaw the dog and cat meat trade." (https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-resolution/401)

International coverage of the brutal dog and cat meat trade in South Korea has stained Namyangju, South Korea’s image. Don’t let it also tarnish your City’s Sister city relationship. The time to end this tragedy is now. The favor of your reply is requested.