ELI MEIXLER: ‘A Korean animals rights group is calling for a ban on the sale and consumption of dog meat ahead of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics next month in South Korea. The Korea Association for Animal Protection demanded the prohibition both out of compassion for the animals and to bolster Korea’s reputation on the world stage, as the practice of eating dogs — while not widespread — may alarm some international visitors, the Korea Times reported.
“We wish to bring an end to Korea’s dog meat-eating habit,” the association said at a press conference on Jan. 3. “Dogs are man’s best friend and we shouldn’t eat them.” There would be some precedent for a ban: in 1984, South Korean leader Chun Doo-hwan temporarily prohibited the sale of canine meat ahead of the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympics, according to the Times…
IAKA estimates that dog trade generates $2 billion annually, while Korea’s Statistics Information Service 2010 agriculture census reported over 100,000 farms holding 892,820 dogs, according to the Korean Observer. Other estimates put the annual toll in the millions of dogs’. SOURCE…
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