On Monday, a 'stray' dog was beaten to death and drowned in a Minhang Park fountain by a security guard. The incident quickly went viral and sparked outrage among netizens. Will's Charity, a major animal rescue organization, incinerated the dog's body and continues to help out by seeking justice for the killing.
The organization stated that animal activists from the US, Spain, France, Italy, and Singapore are closely following this incident. The dog was at first identified as a stray on scene, as he did not have a collar. After the story went viral, the dog's owner identified him as her pet named Haiden (黑蛋) and proved it with videos of the dog happily playing earlier in the day.
According to a report verified by Will's, Haiden was living with an elderly lady who adopted him 6 months ago. On the day of the incident, Haiden escaped the house with no leash or collar and wandered into the Minhang Sports Park. He was still a little puppers.
The elderly owner fainted several times after finding out about her dog's brutal death. She arrived at the scene last night and joined many others in mourning. According to Chinese tradition, seven days after one passes away, his or her soul will return to the scene and bid loved ones farewell. This Sunday at 1pm, people will again gather at Minhang Sports Park, dressed in black, to mourn Haiden's death.
Minhang Sports Park is registered as a five star park that does not allow stray dogs. According to Will's, the security guard that killed Haiden was taking orders from a park manager.
Activists are now holding the park accountable. Haiden wasn't actually a stray dog. Even if he was, why did he have to be beaten and drowned to death? The park could have contacted an animal rescue organization to take the dog away without fuss.
At first, the park refused to apologize. Police were even called to the scene. With rapidly growing public pressure from around the country, the park finally agreed to release a formal apology at 4pm today. A copy will be pasted on every entrance into the park. The park will also state when the manager who ordered the killing will step out to formally apologize and give the full story.
Animal rights activists are now campaigning for a law that will prevent any more senseless acts of animal cruelty.
[Images via Une Loi Pour les Animaux de Chine, Weibo, Will's Charity]
0 User Comments