Animal rights groups: 'The 'stray' ones are not the dogs, but the leaders'

The "Right to Live Initiative" gathered yesterday (February 18) in front of the Kavacık Boğaziçi Cinema in İstanbul's Beykoz district to advocate for the rights of street animals.

The initiative, stating that it held a press release to be the voice of cats and dogs from the citizens before the Local Administration Elections on March 31, called on the citizens to take action for the development of peaceful, inclusive, equal rights, and justice policies for all beings.

"Local administrations failing in their duties"

The initiative's statement is as follows:

"We are going through a period where the mass collection and massacres of dogs we live together on our streets are being re-discussed under the names of 'culling,' 'collection,' and 'putting to sleep,' and targeted as if there were no other problems in the country for the 2024 Local Elections. Almost every day, we witness a municipality or citizen's cruelty, torment, and violence against animals.

"While the legal and illegal breeding and sale of animals are not banned and not controlled,
"When there is no systematic instillation of awareness of animal care and adoption from shelters,
"Instead of neutering and vaccinating by municipalities, animals are thrown into mountains, dumps, and highway edges, left to multiply, live in misery, and be condemned to death,
"When local administrations failing in their duties, there is no sanction against municipal mayors,
"When education curriculum and mainstream media do not include content and practices increasing awareness of animal rights,

"Which morality?"

"We see that animals, who have no crime except being born, are labeled as 'stray,' declared enemies, and the hate speech, which is the biggest reason for the situation we are in, is fueled by authorities themselves.

"While killers who rape and commit violence and torture against children, women, and animals roam freely, what morality and safe streets are our current leaders and candidate politicians talking about? The attempt of municipalities with insufficient space to carry out the massive collection of all dogs to giant isolation centers, where they will be imprisoned, fits into which law, conscience, and belief?

"In a period where unlawfully issued Presidency circulars blatantly violate existing laws, the government, municipalities, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry commit crimes officially without any reservations. Trying to spread top-down hate speech, considering themselves superior to both the law and animals, they try to disseminate their hate speech to all segments of society."

"We will not vote"

"We do not allow this, and we will not! Because Turkey still has a culture where street animals are fed, given water, and places to shelter in winter, and where cases of violence against animals are met with great reaction.

"The 'stray' ones are not the dogs, but the leaders who have burdened Turkey for years, polarizing society with hate politics; those who turn killing and rape into a country's culture. Enough is enough! We will not vote for politicians who make our friends enemies, who undermine the culture of living together by promising to lock them in death camps under the name of 'natural habitat.' We will not bow to regressive and fascist hostility policies. Living is a right. We will not submit to the reactionary and fascist hostility policies. Living is a right. Freedom for animals, humans, and the earth!" (TY/VK)