An animal protection organization has released a short film in four different languages to inform foreign workers in Taiwan that killing dogs and cats for their meat is against the law and could cost them their jobs.
The Taiwan Animal Equality Association (TAEA) — a group devoted to the promotion of animal rights and welfare — and Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lin Tai-hua (林岱樺) presented the film at a news conference on Friday.
Lin said many foreign workers in Taiwan have no knowledge of Taiwan’s Animal Protection Act (動物保護法) and some have been deported for killing dogs and cats.
Violating the act is subject to a prison sentence of up to one year and a fine of between NT$100,000 and NT$1 million (US$3,093 and US$30,931), Lin said, adding that if foreign workers are convicted they are deported after serving their sentence.
They are also not allowed to work in Taiwan ever again, which “is a great loss” to foreign workers, Lin said.
The problem has emerged because of conflicting cultures, Lin said, with foreign workers from places where the consumption of dog and cat meat is a common practice.
The film aims to reinforce education on the issue, he said.
The TAEA said in a separate statement that foreign workers need to understand that in Taiwan people treat dogs and cats as part of their families.
That is why “work to promote regulations and local culture” among foreign workers is essential, the group said.
Because many foreign workers who have been convicted of killing dogs for their meat have come from Southeast Asia, the film is in Vietnamese, Indonesian, Filipino and Thai.
In 2013, five Vietnamese foreign workers were arrested in Chiayi County for allegedly killing two dogs, cooking and eating them.
In 2011, a Thai worker employed in Taichung was found guilty of beating a dog to death and then grilling it for consumption.
Several agencies that deal with foreign workers, including the Ministry of Labor and the Council of Agriculture, along with manpower brokerage firms, have taken measures to educate foreign workers on Taiwan’s regulations involving animal protection.
Chu Chih-hui (朱其慧), a division chief with the Workforce Development Agency, said people who suspect a foreign worker of killing a dog or cat can call the 1955 foreign worker protection hotline for ministry and council help with the case, who can help protect workers’ rights.
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