The 2020 Coronavirus pandemic, which is killing thousands of people around the world, has been linked to the consumption of wild animal meats and the “wet markets” where these are sold.
The virus was first identified in the Wuhan province, in China. Researchers linked it to a “wet market” where all types of domestic and wild animals are traded – dead or alive. These include chickens, rabbits, fish, bats, snakes, pangolins, bats and lizards.
The animals are kept in overcrowded, cruel and unhygienic conditions, and sourced either through illegal trade networks or bred in wildlife breeding facilities in China.
The Coronavirus is a direct result of eating animals sold from these cruel, unhygienic conditions. Let us learn from this and ban this cruelty forever!
Scientists believe that the virus jumped from wild animals to humans, and could have come from pangolins, bats or even cobras. These fresh and live meat markets – where blood, fluid, feces and trash mix together – are believed to be the perfect grounds for cross-species disease transmission.
The Chinese government placed a temporary ban on wildlife animal trade and consumption for eating purposes in February this year, as it did following the 2002 outbreak of SARS, another deadly viral disease. The ban included the buying, selling, transporting, and breeding of wild animals. It is supposed to remain in place until the Coronavirus epidemic comes to an end.
As an animal lover, please join us in fighting to END dangerous wildlife wet markets completely.
It is almost unimaginable that, after inflicting the Coronavirus on the world, China intends to go back to the situation that caused a lethal global epidemic!
Yet, that is exactly what they plan to do!
China’s existing Wildlife Protection Law is intended to protect only endangered animals and does not apply to all species. Pangolins ARE covered by the law and China knows they are among the most endangered species in the world. But China has consistently ignored its responsibilities with the catastrophic consequences that every one of us is affected by.
China has temporarily closed the wet markets but the market for wild animal parts for medicine, research, fur or petting remain intact. Pangolins are used in traditional Chinese medicines. This poses an even greater threat to a species which we will most certainly lose, unless we raise our voices to demand enforcement of trafficking laws.
YOU can help this situation. Please share this email as widely as possible and donate today so we can keep up the pressure and shame the Chinese government into stopping wet markets and end the trade in wild animals forever.
We are monitoring the situation and will keep you up to date!
For the animals,
Andrea Matthee
Lead Campaigner
Political Animal Lobby
P.S. We can’t do it alone – please contribute what you can to PAL today and help save the entire pangolin species from dying out.
TAKE ACTION
Virus-breeding animal markets MUST BE CLOSED FOREVER!
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2020/03/16 – Coronavirus
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NOTICE TO US RESIDENTS
The Political Animal Lobby (PAL) is a UK entity. All donations are deposited into a dedicated PAL account at Lloyds of London in the UK. PAL’s mission is to persuade politicians and governments to improve legislation to help animals – however no donations will be used in the US and no such PAL activity will take place in the US.
Donations from US residents are not tax deductible.
