Written by PETA
How would you feel if you were chained, abused and kept away from your loved ones? Unimaginable, isn't it? That's what elephants experience in circuses. They're forced to perform by being jabbed with iron hooks, whipped, and beaten, and when not performing, they're kept in chains. PETA has teamed up with MTV Act for our "Elephants Never Forget" campaign – visit our MTV Act page to urge the government to ban the use of elephants and other animals in circuses.
Animals in circuses perform confusing, unnatural tricks – such as riding bicycles, standing on their heads or jumping through rings of fire – not because they want to but out of fear of punishment. They are also subjected to chronic confinement.
The Indian government has already banned the use of bears, monkeys, tigers, panthers, lions and bulls in performances, but no other animals should be forced to suffer in circuses either. Bolivia, Paraguay, Greece and Bosnia and Herzegovina have banned the use of all animals in circuses. It's time for India to follow suit.
Here's what you can do to help end the suffering of animals used in circuses:
Scene-stealing canine star Uggie won hearts and awards for his performance in The Artist. Now the world's favourite pup is the star of a PETA India campaign encouraging everyone always to adopt, never buy. It's a subject close to Uggie's heart because the energetic dog was passed off by three families before he found his forever home – and he knows that every animal deserves the same happy ending.
Twenty-five million homeless dogs are struggling to survive on India's streets. They go hungry, are hit by vehicles or are abused by cruel people. The luckier ones are in animal shelters waiting for a family to call their own.
When you are ready to welcome a new animal into the family, please don't support pet stores or breeders. Always adopt – never buy.
Whoa! Sunny Leone – yes, the Bigg Boss and Jism 2 star – has just tweeted a photograph of herself in a PETA tee announcing her involvement in a soon-to-be-released PETA ad campaign to help end dog homelessness.
Sunny, who, along with her hubby, has two rescued dogs at home, wants to urge her fans to get their companion dogs sterilised and to adopt homeless dogs from animal shelters or the street.Sunny's ad with PETA will be released later this year. Keep an eye out for the campaign! And remember: Always adopt and never buy.
Most children naturally feel concern and affection for animals but learn cruelty from society and often lose sight of their compassion. Also, it is now a well-documented fact that violence against animals by children is often an early warning sign of future acts of violence toward fellow humans. Through education, PETA hopes to ensure a future in which animals, our environment and people are treated kindly.
In an effort to help educators raise socially aware students, PETA has developed a humane-education programme called "Compassionate Citizen" for children ages 8 to 12. A similar programme to PETA's multidisciplinary package is also in use in the US, the UK and other countries. It can be used in language arts, science and social studies curricula and is intended to give students an understanding of why hatred and cruelty directed against others – regardless of species – are wrong.
Compassionate Citizen has been praised by numerous celebrities, including Lara Dutta, Raveena Tandon Thadani, Anupam Kher and Jackie Shroff as well as by educators, police and environmentalist Dr RK Pachauri, director general of the prestigious Energy and Resources Institute.
The programme is provided to schools and teachers free of charge and is being used by 14 lakh children in more than 7,000 private and government schools throughout India, including the Doon School in Dehradun, Delhi Public School, Springdales, Mother's International and Sanskriti schools in New Delhi and Jamnabai Narsee, Lilavatibai Podar and Ryan Global schools in Mumbai.
The programme consists of a 28-minute video featuring suggested topics of discussion, video footage of animals, cartoons and a text pack. The pack includes a guide for teachers and reproducible worksheets. Although designed to be included in the monthly curriculum, the programme can also be used for a shorter period of time, including a one-day workshop.
If you are a student, parent or teacher, approach the school principal and ask him or her to order a Compassionate Citizen pack today! For more information, contact Puja Mahajan at PujaM@petaindia.org.
Written by Kriti-S
PETA India has written to Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi asking him to allow us to put the covered Uttar Pradesh elephant statues to good use. While the statues are covered, PETA India would like to put banners on them that read, "Cover-Up by the Big Top: Elephants in the Circus Are Beaten and Shackled". Here is a mock-up of what the banner would look like on a covered elephant statue.
This high-profile "cover-up" would help expose the cruelty to animals that circuses work hard to cover up. When they're not being forced to perform meaningless tricks that are confusing to them, elephants used in circuses are kept shackled. These majestic creatures are trained through beatings and the fear of physical punishment. Circuses are no fun for other animals either. Birds used in circuses often have their wings clipped, which prevents them from engaging in their most important natural behaviour: flying. Horses are often kept tethered with short ropes, and dogs are locked in cages.
PETA India Chief Functionary Poorva Joshipura wrote, "The covering of the statues and party symbols has caught the attention of people around the globe. By allowing us to place these banners on the elephant statues, you would help us encourage people worldwide to boycott circuses, thereby helping countless animals whose pain goes unnoticed. Supporting us in this good deed may also help to quiet those who have criticised the move to cover the statues. It would be a win-win situation".
Would you like to see the elephant statues being used this way?
Bulls who are punched, wrestled to ground and hit with fists during the cruel sport of jallikattu have found new friends in the Irish animal rights group Animal Rights Action Network (ARAN).
After learning that despite the Indian government's ban on the use of bulls as performing animals, the Madras High Court Bench gave permission for the cruel bull-abusing contact game jallikattu to be held in Tamil Nadu, the founder of ARAN fired off a letter to the Indian Minister of Tourism. In the letter, he said that ARAN plans to place "Incredible Cruelty" advertisements across European cities calling for a boycott of Indian tourism until the cruel bull-abusing contact game jallikattu is put to an end.
John Carmody, the founder of ARAN, wrote: "India's reputation for treating animals with the utmost compassion and care is a major draw for almost everyone who is considering visiting your beautiful country. How can that image endure when a state government endorses an activity in which terrified bulls are surrounded by hundreds of shouting men, are hit with fists, have their tails twisted and pulled – and some even snapped and broken – and are jumped on and wrestled to the ground?"
PETA India and its affiliates around the world have been protesting against the cruelty of jallikattu and urging the Ministry of Environment and Forests to enforce the ban on jallikattu.
So, what do you think about ARAN's campaign?
What was the best thing about 2011? It was a banner year for animals in India! Yes, with your support we won many victories. Here's a quick recap:
After years of extensive campaigning, we were able save millions of animals from being tortured each year in the name of science. All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) agreed to retire to sanctuaries many of the monkeys who were kept in tiny, cramped cages for many years and made significant improvements in the care of other animals at its central animal facility in New Delhi. In a groundbreaking decision, with your help and the pushing of progressive scientists, the University Grants Commission called for an end to animal dissection and animal experimentation for university and college zoology and life-sciences courses across India.
The year also brought relief for bulls who are kicked, punched, jumped on, dragged to the ground and otherwise tormented in the bloody "sport" of jallikattu. PETA’s efforts, your letters, e-mails and phone calls, in addition to Hema Malini's appeal, and the work of other caring groups together led to one of the biggest victories for bulls in India when the Ministry of Environment and Forests banned the use of bulls as performing animals. This law also makes any of kind of bull racing illegal now in India!
Our young animal rights brigade, PETA Youth, tabled at hundreds of colleges, gathering the support of countless passionate students from all across India and turning them into animal rights activists.
We made headlines in the media for our eye-catching demonstrations, animal rescues, celebrity ambassadors and innovative methods of animal rights activism.
There are far too many victories, both large and small, to list them all here, but there is one thing that remains constant through all our accomplishments: your support. Support our fight for animal rights by making a donation or joining our Activist Network.
We hope 2012 will be even better for animals!
Vegetarianism is not only healthy and kind to animals but also always in vogue! That's why the list of vegetarian celebrities from around the globe just grows and grows. The latest star to go vegetarian and to team up with PETA to speak up for animals is the ultra-sexy actor from Pakistan Veena Malik. Check out her new ad for PETA:
What was the reason behind her compassionate move?
"Going vegetarian is one of the smartest decisions I've ever made", says Malik, who won her first Lux Style Award in 2007 for being the most stylish celebrity on the red carpet. "I feel better, I'm healthier and I have the satisfaction of knowing that my food choices also help protect animals and the environment."
Thank you, Veena! Your decision to kick the meat habit not only will save lives but also is a gift to Mother Earth. A recent United Nations report concluded that a global shift towards a meat-free diet is necessary to combat the worst effects of climate change.
Veena was recently in Mumbai to unveil her ad with PETA at the Priyadarshini Park and Sports Complex in Malabar Hill. As you can imagine, she was swarmed by media outlets.
Go on – be a part of the growing number of people who refuse to tolerate cruelty to animals and go vegetarian!