Councillors requested to back animal circus ban

dublin | animal rights | other press Monday July 14, 2008 14:38 by Laura Broxson - National Animal Rights Association naracampaigns at gmail dot com PO Box 11019, Dublin 2

Councillors requested to back animal circus ban

http://www.herald.ie/national-news/city-news/councillor....html

By Cormac Murphy
Monday July 14 2008

Councillors in a second Dublin local authority will be asked to support a ban on circuses which use wild animal acts.

A motion has been tabled at tonight's Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown County Council meeting calling for the introduction of the restriction.

Green Party councillor Nessa Childers wants members to back "bye-laws or other measures which would ensure that circuses which use wild animals are prohibited from performing in any part of the local authority area".

The move comes after councillors in Fingal voted last October to ban the circuses from performing on public land in its area.

Officials in Fingal are still looking into how the vote in favour of the prohibition on wild animal acts can be implemented in practice.

Cllr Childers states in her motion she is seeking the ban "in light of the evidence of suffering endured by the animals involved and the serious animal welfare issues raised".

Ms Childers is sure to draw the wrath of circus bodies. They have already been severely critical of the Fingal vote.

Albert Tyler-Moore of UK-based Entertainment & Leisure Services Association (ELSA) said: "In the press articles it was stated that Clare Daly, the Swords councillor, highlighted the 'well documented evidence of the suffering endured by the animals involved' and went on to say that Ms Daly was calling for the introduction of bye-laws to see the likes of performing monkeys, elephants on bicycles and lions jumping through hoops removed from captivity.

"I am not aware of any well documented evidence of the suffering endured by animals performing in the circus. What I am aware of is a lot of false propaganda issued by so-called animal lovers who amount to nothing more than urban terrorists hiding behind the banner of animal charities, sucking in people just like (Cllr Daly) to help with their attack on the circus community."

But Circus Watch Ireland had congratulated Fingal councillors for passing the motion.

"This is an extremely important first step towards ending the Victorian practice of keeping wild animals in travelling shows, and it reflects the growing opposition in this country to the cruelty of animals which is inherent in all animal circuses," said Nuala Donlon at the time.

Ms Donlon said bans have already been introduced by local authorities throughout both the UK and continental Europe.