Humane students win

Winners of the Humane Campus Challenge, Emily Williams and Anna Ludvik from the SCU Animal Law Club.

The Southern Cross University Animal Law Club has won a national competition to get people to write to their local MP calling for an end to live animal exports.

The Humane Campus Challenge was organised by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPCA) and was due to run throughout the month of May, but with Four Corners airing a program about the live trade to Indonesia on May 30, the issue exploded across the media and the competition was extended. Animal Law Club president and founder Anna Ludvik said about 20 people helped by handing out information around town and on campuses on the North Coast and the Gold Coast, as well as using social media to promote the campaign. They ended up with a grocery box full of letters.

“There was overwhelming support from the university and the community and I’m proud to live in a community that wants to see justice done for the animals, for farmers and for meat workers,” Anna said, adding that winning the competition was not the end of the matter for the club. “We won’t stop campaigning until live animal exports are history.”

The WSPCA campaign had been more focussed on the live sheep trade to the Middle East. Australia exports four million sheep a year and about 40,000 die during transport. It is a gruelling 35-day journey with three sheep confined to a square metre. But the reaction to the Four Corners program has put the focus onto the cattle trade with Indonesia.

“What I’m hoping is that people begin to understand how much an animal suffers through these kinds of practices. Animal protection advocates have been talking about animal cruelty in these industries for a long time, but to have that visual image I think makes people understand the extent of the suffering,” Anna said. “What baffles me is why we are doing it in the first place. It’s to Australia’s detriment that we export these animals: loss of profits for Australia, closure of abattoirs, the threat to regional communities as we lose jobs in export. “Before this exposé, farmers up north were looking to alternate markets as the Indonesian market is increasingly more focussed on self sufficiency and has lowered import demands. They were already considering increasing chilled and frozen meats for new markets.”

For topping the Humane Campus Challenge, the SCU Animal Law Club will receive $1000, which they will use to keep campaigning. Anna and vice president Emily Williams want to hear the voices of as many farmers and people working in the industry as possible and are planning a trip to Darwin later this year to meet with farmers and see the Australian end of the industry first hand. They say they are both deeply committed to regional Australia and believe that ending the live export trade is better for the industry in the long term.

“We can’t do anything for our animals when they are abroad. At least if they are here and we have a problem, we can do something about it,” Emily said.

Although pleased about the suspension of cattle going to Indonesia announced this week, Emily and Anna said they need to keep the pressure on to bring the industry to a permanent end.

“Our fears are that as soon as this issue is out of the spotlight it will start up again, the same as before. Exposés such as this one are not new and not just about Indonesia,” Anna said.

For people wanting to show their support for the campaign to end live animal exports from Australia, there will be a national day of action on Saturday, June 18, which will include a street march in Lismore. The Northern Rivers Community Legal Centre’s Animal Law & Education Project (ALEP) will also be holding talks at the Casino RSM on Thursday, June 30, from 2.30pm and at the Lismore Workers Club on Friday, July 1, from 10am. For more information about these talks and rally, phone Angela Pollard on 6621 1005.