EDITORIAL: Dog lives matter!

So many things matter in our lives. But those are human live or plants or fish in the rivers because they have a beauty that attracts all irrespective page or race.

But how many of us take time to look at the stray dogs in the streets of Dhaka crammed with 20 million people. For some, they too have a heart that yearns for a little care instead of living on that is dumped in waste dumps and bins. This some are volunteers in many parts of this city who take time out to provide them a decent food during COVID-19.

A decision by the Dhaka South City Corporation to relocate some 30,000 dogs out of the city came last month as a shock to the animal lovers. Even more shocking is that the process has already started and nearly 200 of them were dumped at an eastern suburb of Matuail landfill in the last couple of days.

Any action that causes sufferings to the canines is considered as act of cruelty, and are punishable under Bangladesh’s Animal Welfare Act of 2019.

The government amended the British-era cruelty against animal law and the High Court in 2015 banned the traditional method of culling dogs to control their population.

The DSCC actions will definitely put the dogs in more suffering in terms of finding decent food on the one hand and on the other they might also turn violent with territory loss to others. They may fight with other animals in the new area and might be injured.

The city’s actions to this effect can be interpreted as cruelty to the canines as the animal rights activists say there are so many alternatives to tackle the problem created by this helpless animals, which the city authorities believe may cause public nuisance and spread of rabies.

The city authorities must take up massive sterilization and vaccination programmes to address the problems and immediately stop its relocation plan underway.

They must be humane in dealing the animals many of them being caged and sold to animal lovers.

Animals, especially dogs are considered a man’s best friend, and let us be caring and not cruel in dealing with them.

We are with the animal rights activists’ campaign “Dhaka dogs belong to Dhaka” and “Dog lives matter.”

To us every life matters!