Egypt supermarket displays lambs ahead of
holiday; offends animal rights activists
28-11-2009 Joseph Mayton, Bikya Masr, Egypt
CAIRO: The sound of a baby lamb startles a few customers at an Egyptian supermarket into a stupor. The shock of seeing a small baby lamb fenced in a tiny three feet by three feet container angers many, who stop and watch the small brown animal stumble to and fro, the almost shrieking “bah, bah” coming from its young mouth. The displaying of the animal, in such a public venue, has left many, Egyptians and foreigners, questioning the worth of the owner’s decision to show the small creature.
“The other one died earlier in the day,” the man tells nonchalantly. He says that they were brought in by the owner from a farm just outside Cairo earlier in the day, but because they had just stopped breastfeeding, the other lamb was unable to survive.
For him, and millions of other Egyptians, the scene doesn’t hit home as abnormal. This is the Eid el-Adha holiday feast that marks the beginning of the Hajj, or pilgrimage, season. Most view it as a necessity to slaughter a sheep in tune with Islamic tradition. Thousands, if not millions, of sheep are slaughtered as part of the holiday, much like turkeys in the United States for Thanksgiving. But, for others, the poor conditions at the supermarket has left an ill taste in their mouth.
“This is horrible, what are they doing, this lamb shouldn’t be here. Look at it, it can barely walk and they already said that its brother or sister has died because of this. How can this not be wrong?” said one Egyptian passing by. They are not alone. Others stop, watch and become ever frustrated by the conditions the lamb, which can barely walk, is placed into.
The branch manager says that the lamb is not to be slaughtered, instead it will be returned to its farm after the holiday. It is simply to mark the holiday that sees sheep butchered in the streets.
“I can’t go out during the day because of the blood that piles up on the streets and now to see this animal being treated this way makes me want to vomit,” says the Egyptian woman.
Others don’t mind seeing the animal in these conditions, saying that it is part of the culture of the feast and “normal” for an animal to be put on display, considering lamb and sheep are part of the “average persons diet this time of year.”
Yehya Abdallah, an employee who sees the congregation of frustrated customers, believes they need to understand that these animals are “for the purpose of eating.” He says that the idea of animal rights is something that has been created by foreigners who don’t understand the realities of life in Egypt.
“Animals are for food, so this is just normal and we shouldn’t get angry over how this animal is treated,” he argues. And what about the other lamb who died because of the conditions? “Animals die, we eat them, so what?” The condescension being handed to Egyptians asking why the animal is being treated this way tells a lot, says Amina Abaza, the head the Society for the Protection of Animal Rights in Egypt (SPARE).
“I have been working for these things for the past 10 years and always people think I am crazy. I am so upset at what is going on and why people can’t treat animals with respect. Even if they are too be butchered, they shouldn’t be put in small pens and not allowed to live their lives, walk around and respected,” she says.
For the small lamb, by Friday, it was still alive, but its obvious anger and frustration could be seen as it continued to push against the small fence, rubbing its head endlessly against the rough edges. It is to be returned to the farm on Saturday, but for now, the anger and ill-will toward the display continues to create tension among the markets customers, who believe the animal should not be on display, and should be treated better.
(Bron: http://bikyamasr.com/)
(Bron foto: Bikya Masr)
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