Taiwan parliament bans selling of dog meat

TAIPEI (AFP) - Taiwan's parliament has banned the selling of dog meat
in an effort to deter the slaughtering of strays, a lawmaker's aide
said.

The original law barred the killing of pets, including dogs and cats,
for their meat, skin (news - web sites) or other parts for financial
benefit.

But it failed to stop vendors from selling slaughtered dogs or to stop
restaurants from offering dog meat as a delicacy.

They were able to evade punishment by claiming that they did not kill
the animals themselves, said the aide to Wang Sing-nan, who proposed
the amendment.

"We hope by stopping the sale of dog meat, the killing will stop too,"
the aide said.

The amendment, passed Tuesday, also increased penalties for violators,
with the fine raised to a maximum of 250,000 Taiwan dollars (7,355 US
dollars), from 10,000 dollars.

Help-Save-A-Pet Fund in Taiwan, a non-profit organization advocating
animal rights, welcomed the bill and planned to offer small rewards to
those providing tips on dog meat sellers.

Secretary-general Liu Yu-tung said she hoped for a further law change
to ban the eating of dog meat altogether.