Chongqing Man's Dog Abuse Sparks Rare Public Protest, Highlighting China's Lack of Animal Cruelty Laws

(Central News Agency, Taipei, June 10) Animal abuse incidents have been frequent in China in recent years. A man surnamed Li in Chongqing was recently discovered to have abused cats and dogs he had adopted. The puppy he adopted had its teeth filed down, its tail cut off, and suffered multiple fractures across its body. This cruel behavior sparked days of protests by animal protection volunteers and citizens outside his residence.

Chinese media outlets such as Guangming.com and Jiemian News have recently reported on this dog abuse incident. According to reports, the local police station took coercive measures against the man surnamed Li on the evening of the 8th on suspicion of throwing objects from a height and damaging public property. However, this failed to quell public anger, and more people continued to join the protest rally. Police removed some protesters on the afternoon of the 9th, but many people remained on the periphery after dark.

Reports indicate that the man surnamed Li is suspected of repeatedly adopting cats and dogs for free through social media and then abusing them. Volunteers recently discovered a puppy on the stairs of the community building where Li lives, suffering from fractures in all four limbs, broken teeth, a severed tail, and a swollen head.

Multiple volunteers and citizens rushed to gather outside Li's apartment building upon hearing the news, holding up posters opposing animal abuse. After the police confiscated the posters, the protesters continued to stay at the scene overnight.

On the morning of the 9th, more and more citizens came to show support, with the number reportedly exceeding one hundred. Authorities banned outsiders from entering the community and began removing some protesters on the afternoon of the 9th. However, a large crowd remained gathered outside the community gate on the evening of the 9th. Some citizens accused the police of using violence during the arrests, and related videos circulating online were censored.

According to a report by Hong Kong's Ming Pao today, mainland China has not yet enacted laws specifically targeting animal abuse. Currently, most animal abuse cases can only be prosecuted under charges such as "disturbing public order" or "intentional destruction of property," which carry relatively light penalties.

The report mentioned that China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs stated in 2020 that animal abuse is a very rare phenomenon and that there is no need to enact a specific law for this rare, immoral behavior, suggesting that the issue could be addressed by improving existing laws.

However, Chinese society has long called for legal reform, but progress has yet to be seen. In March of this year, Sanming City in Fujian Province published the "Sanming City Urban Companion Animal Protection and Management Measures (Draft for Comments)." There was external hope that Sanming City would become the first city in China to establish local regulations for pets. However, the draft was quietly taken offline before the comment period ended, and the Sanming City authorities have not yet explained the reason.

The report states that animal abuse incidents have been frequent in China in recent years, with some cases causing huge uproar online. However, the current case in Chongqing, where a man's dog abuse led to public gatherings, is relatively rare. (Editor: Zhou Huiying / Chen Kaiyu) 1150610