Hi Everybody,
Sunday was traumatic.
Just listening to Lyn White recount some of her experiences from her nine separate investigations into the live animal export trade was harrowing. Many of you will have seen her on the 4 Corners program A Bloody Business. It speaks for itself.
But something else disturbed me at Melbourne’s Ban Live Exports rally on Sunday. Standing just behind me was a supposed farmer with two female colleagues, all of them dressed in drysabone coats and akubra hats, you can picture them. The man was holding up a sign that said “End cruelty NOT live exports”.
A number of people around us (including myself) asked the man to put his sign down during the speeches as, in addition to being offensive to the other 9,000 or so people who were rallying to end the bloody and brutal trade, it was blocking people’s view. The man refused and instead, in a quite taunting manner, tried to engage people in a debate. Naturally, people were reacting with high emotion to the man’s insensitivity to the shocking evidence we have all been confronted with. The more upset he made others, the calmer he seemed to present in his ‘farmer’ suit.
Well, before you could say moo, a pretty in pink presenter and her camera man had swooped to film the ‘controversy’. This blatant attempt to misrepresent the rally was simply too galling, I fully saw red and threw myself between the ‘farmer’ and the camera to prevent a rally with thousands of people being turned into a story about this one man’s opposing view. The media told me they were just “doing their job”. Sounding like a familiar media angle???
After telephoning Animals Australia, I learnt that the so called ‘farmer’ was a regular at their rallies. While he has told people that he comes from Gippsland, he somehow manages to attend all of AA’s rallies, even the snap ones called on very short notice. Does that sound peculiar to you?
Whether Mr Gippsland farmer is an industry plant with a brief to incite ‘greenies’ in the hopes of getting some controversial footage into the media… or just some creepy guy who gets a kick out of offending people who care about things other than profits, do you think it is the media’s role to give his opposing view equal representation as that of around 9,000 others at a rally with a specific call? What is the role of the media in a modern democracy? How should common cause advocates relate to a media of this nature?
We want to hear your views on Live Animal Exports, or the Role of the Media. Please join our blog at http://live.org.au/blog/?p=326 and tell us what YOU think.
Meanwhile, if you think it is wrong to ship millions of animals to places where no laws exist to protect them and where it is well known that they (those that survive the journey that is) are treated appallingly, please add your voice in support of Nina Dubecki’s letter http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1097247/live/Ban_Live_Animal_Exports.doc. You can cut and paste Nina’s words with your own signature and send it to laborconnect@australianlabor.com.au and cc your local member (in our case Michael.Danby.MP@aph.gov.au) and/or you can sign Animals Australia’s petition http://www.animalsaustralia.org/take_action/live-export-conscience-vote calling for a conscience vote on this moral issue.
With best wishes
Deborah Hart, on behalf of LIVE
PS to read about other important campaigns please visit www.live.org.au
I completely share and feel your anger and frustration at how the media tips the balance in favour of the big end of town.
Last Thursday night, about 130 people turned up on a freezing cold night in Toolangi to protest the logging of local forests – which are now a sanctuary for wildlife in an otherwise burned landscape – these forests being untouched by the tragic 2009 fires. Of the 130 people, 4 represented the logging industry and 2 actually spoke up, one who said he would get out of the industry if he was paid tomorrow. The local media turned up to ‘cover’ the story.
This week, the front page of the local paper had the one logger (out of 130) and his claim that the ‘conservationists’ had cost him $80,000. People were in tears at the meeting, saying how their businesses are being impacted by the logging. But no, the 1 person, out of 130 got the front page, and the rest of the meeting were ‘conservationists’ rather than local residents who had suffered the trauma of the fires and now suffer the trauma of the logging.
The media has been reprehensible in its coverage of environmental issues.
Hang in there, and be proud of what you stand for. Unfortunately the media is there to sell conflict and sensationalism, not what is morally right or wrong.
What has live animal export got to do with protecting our natural environment? The farming of animals is a HUGE contributor to environmental devastation; food for a cow can feed sixty humans for instance, deforestation, massive water consumption for both the animals and the food they eat and of course there is all the transport involved in shipping them here and there just to top it off. Add to all that we are doing this in very inhumane conditions with the live export business.
What has live animal export got to do with the Taliban and riots in London? For people to show each other respect, for the world to live with compassion and respect for each other and our mother nature we need to teach these things to the young and we need to live these things each and every one of us. Live animal export neither shows nor teaches respect for ourselves, our earth and certainly it shows a deep lack of compassion. Where there is no compassion in one area there is also none in another. Compassion is compassion, whether it be to animals, others or our mother earth.
The idea that Australian inspectors could ever police foreign abattoirs effectively is completely unrealistic. All Australian animals are entitled to our protection and our livestock should be processed on Australian soil. This is the only way that we will ever be able to ensure their safe handling and most humane slaughter. It will also provide jobs for Australian meat-workers.
Following our Press Council adjudication on lack of balanced reporting by the HSun, the main comment is that although we tried to tie in the 100% of print advertising going to HSun from GP corporation to the HSun’s total inability to publish the established facts on the GP during the advertising period. The Press Council didn’t buy that argument, probably because neither of the parties would ever have a document that guaranteed biased reporting in return for a lucrative advertising contract. And, who in the HSun organisation would blow the whistle, if such a document exists?
This leads to the far more complex web of misinformation, biased reporting and blanket blogging of fair and balanced sites by males questioning the science and the ethics of the scientists. Obviously the carbon intensive industries are opposing any moves to renewable energy and we, the public will never see the strings attached to deniers and psuedo sceptics.
For one Dr Graeme Pearman, there are many bloggers who write to newspaper comments sites, theconversation.edu.au comments and now, oursay.org questions and votes areas.
It’s going to be harder to counter the well funded carbon industry and even to expose how they are driving much of this, especially given Tony Abbott is one heart beat or one scandal away from taking power but we should live in hope.
I commend LIVE and encourage your work. And recommend http://theconversation.edu.au/the-courage-to-lead-gillard-abbott-and-the-climate-change-conundrum-1596?utm_source=The+Conversation+Daily+updates&utm_campaign=12ba1efde5-DailyNewsletter&utm_medium=email and associated stories on climate change, some of which are taken up by newspapers. Also, it may be important to wear down the science deniers by posting factual comments on articles to counter the obfuscation or plain bullsh*t that are given free access because the sites allow any comments.
I prefer Jon Faine’s policy: if a caller says something that is not true, Jon says “that is not true and I’m not going to let you get away with saying that without being challenged.” Our reading of ACMA’s policy on “cuurent affairs” programs, ie talk back, is they have an obligation to do this. Only Jon complies and 3AW is under investigation at the moment for not doing its duty. More of that later, but as Media Watch said, not one complaint has been made about the Sydney shock jocks’ reporting of climate change.
If only our side could communicate the simple fact that there is enough scientific evidence to say we must act now to give future generations a chance to live nearly as well as we do and enough economic evidence that shows the earlier we act the cheaper it will be for all of us.
No capitalist ever made a breakthrough into new industries by looking backwards and insisting we must always continue with existing industries. The Chinese seem to understand this maxim better than the Americans. That’s why General Motors went bankrupt. They should have diversified into fuel efficient cars, hi tech bicycles and a side production line of solar panels instead of demanding a government bailout!
Not all live cattle exports are for slaughter. I don’t have statistics, but I do have facts – my parents sold cattle to China. I agree with Farmer Gipps’ sign, cruelty is the problem, not the exports themselves (unless you count transport). Can we set up a law to allow exporting cattle for breeding but not for slaughtering? Probably not. Can we control the cruel treatment of cattle in foreign countries? Possibly. If camera crews can get in there, so could an inspector, funded by a small levy on exports. Abattoirs would be fined under the sales contract for any mistreatment.
The Pink Lady – well, if her angle of her report said ’9000 people say ban exports, but here’s one man with a different view,’ I think that would be fair. If she intended to put all of the focus on this one banner, then that would not be fair reporting.
In regard to your Ban on live animal export, the unions in this country backed by man’s greed for more money for less working hours, forced most abattoirs and meat companies in Australia to close down, now they want to close down the meat farmers.
I think it is time for me to stop these emails entering into my ultra energy efficient home.
Sad to say the issue of “planting” opposition into environment groups and demonstrations is not new. The latest expose of P.C. Mark Kennedy in european environment groups lead the Gaurdian to expose him, and his actions are now judged as “agent provocateur”, and have resulted in squashed charges against many protestors. Unfortunately the Australian media (perhaps apart from 4 Corners), is “driven” by sensationalism not fact. I wonder if the “lady in pink” thought to ring Animals Australia ?
As the “Murdochgate” saga drags the News Empire further into the gutter than in would want to be, the “Ozzie branch” was quick off the mark to establish its bona fides with an “internal enquiry” (ha). Even the ABC doesn’t remain above criticism with “journalists” such as Ali Moore interviewing Paul Gilding and Thomas Frieman on “Lateline” beginning her segment with the facile ; “If climate change is a car ride, ……..are we there yet? ”
“http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2011/s3247216.htm.
Also interesting seeing “The Age Online” homepage replace it’s “Environment” section with “Executive Lifestyle” and relegate the segment to a hard to find link. Both “Media Lens” and “Democracy Now” covered the Cancun Climate Summit and reported on the dearth of interest from established media, and “Live” would know of the lack of media interest when 10,000 people gather to make a human sign on Princess Bridge. Commercial media now panders to it’s advertisers and relies on the apathy of the Australian public, it may be useful for “Live” to place a list of reliable internet news outlets on it’s website.
Ban live animal export because of the cruelty involved, both the lengthy poor conditions transportation and the non-humane method of slaughtering. Also, the NT cattle industry have other acceptable options, namely, abattoirs in NT. Isn’t it bad enough that we kill animals in order to eat them? At least let’s ensure they have decent lives beforehand.