Sunday, 20 May - 12 noon - Ramsgate, Kent
19.05.11
A protest rally to mark one year since live animal shipments started at Ramsgate port, provoking a tide of protest, is taking place on Sunday, 20 May at noon.
Compassion in World Farming and the RSPCA are backing the local groups organising the event, which will include representatives from the two charities speaking about the trade and how it can be ended.
We are urging people to come to the bandstand on Wellington Crescent in Ramsgate, Kent to find out more about live animal transport and how you can help end it.
Local people are strongly opposed to the export of live animals
Ramsgate is the only British port currently being used for live exports to the continent* and opposition to the trade in the town is strong among local people and Thanet District Council, which owns the port.
Ramsgate port is obliged to accept shipments of live animals – mainly young calves and sheep, as it is a legal trade.
Working together to put an end to this cruel trade
Compassion in World Farming and the RSPCA are working closely with groups in Ramsgate and Thanet District Council to stop the trade completely, but in the interim making sure that the welfare of animals being taken through the port is the top priority.
We are also working with farming and food industries and Euro MPs to find a long-term sustainable solution that enables animals to stay – and be reared - in the UK instead.
Dil Peeling, director of public affairs at Compassion in World Farming, will be speaking at the rally. He said:
We've been working with people in Ramsgate since live exports moved here last May and it's clear to us that there is overwhelming local opposition to this cruel trade.
For anyone wondering why we are so against live exports, the rally is an opportunity to find out.
It's also a chance for the people of Ramsgate to show they don't want these trucks using their ports.
An unwanted anniversary of shame
RSPCA chief executive Gavin Grant, who will also be at Sunday's rally, said:
This is a sad anniversary, not only for Ramsgate but for the UK as a whole.
There is no good reason why hundreds of sheep and calves should be shipped to face gruelling journeys across Europe just to be slaughtered or kept in conditions which could be illegal here.
The RSPCA has fought against this trade for years and we will keep campaigning to end it for as long as it takes.
Regular RSPCA presence now at Ramsgate port
RSPCA inspectors are now at the docks for every shipment of the Joline, a slow-moving Russian ex-tank carrier which can take up to six hours to cross the Channel to Calais.
Inspectors check the condition of the animals on the trucks before they are loaded onto the ferry.
The trade should be 'on the hook not on the hoof'
Both Compassion in World Farming and the RSPCA have pledged continued support to the people of Ramsgate in their attempts to rid their town of the shame of live animal shipments.
Both organisations believe the trade should be on the hook, not on the hoof.
Gavin continued:
If meat needs to go to the continent then it should be on the hook not on the hoof.
Meanwhile our inspectors will be here to make sure the law to protect animals is enforced and that those abusing animals are brought to justice.
Join us at the rally
A march and rally in Ramsgate last August attracted more than 400 people and we're hoping to raise just as much support this time.
You can help us to end long distance live transport.
Meet us on:
- Sunday, 20 May 2012
- at 12 noon
- at the bandstand on Wellington Crescent in Ramsgate, Kent.
Related articles
News
Our inspectors at Ramsgate port for first time in a decade
A pledge of zero tolerance to welfare breaches at the ports
RSPCA Insights blog post
The beginning of the end for live animal transport at Ramsgate port
* According to responses by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to Freedom of Information requests by Compassion in World Farming.