kangaroo shooters

The following letter from the Australian Wildlife Protection Council Inc. to the Victorian Ombudsman urgently signals the failure of Victorian law to protect Victorian wildlife and the lack of standing for wildlife carers against ill-based and frequent cull permits to farmers in a situation where no-one actually counts the kangaroos or actual ferals, like rabbits. The situation is truly scandalous; Victoria's almost useless laws were conceived and are administered with utter cynicism.

Victorian Ombudsman
Level 1 North Tower
459 Collins Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
DX210174 Melbourne

(Headings inserted by Candobetter.net editor)
Dear Ombudsman's Officers,

Carlisle River Wildlife Shelter’s Ron and Carola Anstis are heartbroken to learn animals they had spent years caring for were being shot dead thanks to approval from the State Government.

They are the only wildlife shelter in the area that cared for Eastern Grey Kangaroos, between Geelong and Warrnambool, and that’s a big area. The Anstises take in pouch young we care for them for about two years and spend more than $1000 on each.

Ron Anstis said

“We just told the department we can’t put that much into it only for them to allow someone else to kill it. This is the same department that issue us our wildlife licence.”

So the same Government Department, (Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning- DELWP), that issues wildlife licences, is the same department that issues killing permits.

Wildlife carers disempowered, given no standing at law

Ron and Carola have no ability to fight that permit whatsoever, and there is no appeals process to allow residents to dispute cull permits where required. These wildlife carers spend their own time to feed and nurture wildlife, only to have them threatened by a hostile neighbour with a permit to kill! What contradictory values are being fostered by our State government by their liberal distribution of AWTC permits. Without wildlife corridors in Victoria, we have a situation in which livestock farmers are next door to wildlife habitat areas, and there's no clear distinctions.

The government officer was satisfied that the landholder had explored available non-lethal management measures, such as maintenance and improvement to boundary fencing, prior to applying for the ATCW.

“The officer also confirmed that the kangaroos were causing damage to pasture from overgrazing….”

Wonder if they’ve assessed if it’s been “overgrazed” from overstocking of livestock and/or feral animals?

“ “Two rabbits eat the same amount as a kangaroo and a cow with a calf at foot will eat as much as 30 kangaroos; DELWP should be required to explain to the applicant the dietary differences between kangaroos and cattle so that the applicant can be properly informed about the amount of competition for pasture that actually exists,”

“ Mr Anstis said.

Contradictory Victorian law forces wildlife carers to abandon rescued animals

The couple left a rescued joey at government office in protest over a kangaroo cull permit at their neighbour’s property.
The Anstises were forced to leave eight-month-old joey, at the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning offices in Colac on Tuesday.
The Anstises had decided to stop rescuing and rehabilitating joeys and injured eastern grey kangaroos because of the contradictory action by DELWP of giving their neighbour permission to legally cull 60 roos! The neighbours want to improve their pastures, the cheap way.

Call for exclusion zones around wildlife shelters to prevent culling of wildlife

The couple, with 23 years of experience in wildlife care, is calling for state government change that would see exclusion zones around wildlife shelters to prevent the allocation of culling permits.

Victoria, the most cleared and damaged State has lost its balance, and has no place for Eastern Grey Kangaroos! Livestock, infrastructure, land clearing, roads, urbanisation and liberal distribution of ATCW Permits means these iconic kangaroos are doomed to be left to die, or if found as joeys, in the large area of Victoria that the Anstises served, to be rescued. They need our help and support!

We of the AWPC are making the following claims:

- There is NO appeals process for wildlife carers and other members of the public to challenge the application of ATCW permits
- there are no exclusion zones around wildlife carers, or wildlife corridors, and little regard to their workload and contribution to wildlife in Victoria
-”overgrazing” is assumed to be an excess of kangaroos, without assessment to overstock of livestock, or feral species
-Kangaroos are soft targets easy to shoot, instead of taking non-lethal strategies.
- There are clear conflicts of interests within our State government department DELWP, as they are responsible for protecting our native species, and at the same time are distributing ATCW permits! These conflicting duties should be separate, and independent of each other. There should be more processes involved in assessment, advice and consideration for neighbours and the community.
- DELWP admit that they do not know how many kangaroos there are, nor other more “common” native animals in Victoria, and rely on anecdotal evidence – including that from land holders and accident rates. This inhibits their ability to adequate response to killing permits.
-The liberal distribution of this ATCW permit is dividing this local community, and creating conflict of purposes and hostile neighbourhoods. If the neighbour wants to improve pastures, it should done in a consultative way, not contrary to the interests of their neighbours.

We will wait for your response, and we would like to lobby for an APPEALS PROCESS before more ATCWs are allocated.

Thank you

Kind regards

Maryland Wilson President
Vivienne Ortega Secretary
Australian Wildlife Protection Council (AWPC)
http://awpc.org.au
Ross House, level 3, Flinders Lane
Melbourne, 3000
Date: October 3, 2015

The ABC is to screen a documentary about kangaroos. It is scheduled for television on ABC1 channel will this coming Tuesday evening 21st February 2012 at 8:30pm
It is set in Canberra, Australian Capital Territroy, alias the 'Taijin' of kangaroo slaughter.

The programme is entitled #10;">'Kangaroo Mob'

But the prior promotional trailer includes snippets of interviews with those seeking to sell their sick desire for mass slaughter of Australia's native kangaroos.
Is this documentary really disguised propaganda by a locally struggling trade in Australian wildlife?

The ABC is to screen a documentary about kangaroos. It is scheduled for television on ABC1 channel will this coming Tuesday evening 21st February 2012 at 8:30pm
It is set in Canberra, Australian Capital Territroy, alias the 'Taijin' of kangaroo slaughter.

The programme is entitled #10;">Kangaroo Mob'

The ABC promotional trailer reads:
'In the second of our new strand of Wild Ones natural history documentaries, we meet the mob of 'street smart' kangaroos moving into Australia's capital city and the ecologists following their every move.

Over the course of one drought-stricken year we follow mob leader Black Spot and kangaroo mum Madge with her two young joeys - mischievous Sonny and tiny pouch-bound Alice.
Learning to be an urban 'roo is tough for little Sonny, who must negotiate busy roads, and avoid cars and dogs in order to find food. When the city announces a kangaroo cull, his life is in serious danger.
Thanks to the latest scientific technology we uncover surprising new animal behaviour whilst delving into the controversial issues that arise when sharing your backyard with a large wild creature

Kangaroo Mob is a warm and entertaining look at what happens when human development encroaches on wildlife habitat and two very different species are forced to co-exist.'

The ABC promotional trailer also disturbingly includes snippets of an interview with those seeking to sell their sick desire for mass slaughter of Australia's native kangaroos.

Is this documentary really disguised propaganda by a locally struggling trade in Australian wildlife?
We shall be watching the programme with animal rights scrutiny.

This programme is recommended viewing for anyone concerned about the plight of wildlife everywhere.

Background reading:

1. 2011...Another Very Bad Year for Canberra's Kangaroos!

2. Canberra Kangaroos

Menkit's reaction to the vicious slaughter by Chris Palmer to kangaroos is an understandable normal human reaction. The slaughter and abuse of Australia wildlife makes my blood curdle.

On 29-Mar-2010, Chris Palmer, the self-confessed serial roo shooter on CanDoBetter wrote:

"My son is an up and coming roo shooter to at the age of 4 he can skin and gut a roo nearly as quick as me and over the last 4 weekends he has shoot over 50 roos with only 8 misses they still didnt get away tho like always dad was there to clean up the mess."

Clearly, this individual values his behaviour of slaughtering kangaroos acceptable to the extent he is inculcating in his young son his same values, attitudes and practices from an early age. Shooting wildlife is a violent crime against the natural animal kingdom. We are not savages anymore. We don't have to kill wild animals. It is a choice and an immoral act. Clean kills are wrong but also occasional. The suffering death of a bullet injury by a 4 year old followed up with a knife or blunt axe to the joey reflects a vicious and depraved existence.

Alaskan native Gray Wolves killed under Sarah Palin's predator control policy [Grizzly Bay]

It is a fact that acts of animal cruelty lead to forms of cruelty against humans.

"A criminologist and forensic psychologist at Bond University, said the torturing, maiming and killing of animals were red flags of someone capable of future violence against people."

They go on to state specific cases: "Archibald McCafferty, Sydney's 'Kill Seven' murderer, used to strangle chickens, cats and dogs before killing people."

"In Victoria, serial killer Paul Charles Denyer disembowelled a native cat and cut the throat of its kittens."

"Martin Bryant, who killed 35 people at Port Arthur, tortured and harassed animals at age seven, which was one of the first red flags he was a person with severe conduct disorder symptoms."

Then just last January 2010, a baby Koala was shot multiple times and eventually died. It's mother too was shot though survived, as explained in the following news article from Brisbane just two month ago:

Koalas shot north of Brisbane [CAMERON ATFIELD, Brisbane Times, 19-Jan-2010]

'A young koala is fighting for its life after it was wounded in a cowardly shooting at Morayfield, north of Brisbane.

Moreton Bay Koala Rescue president Annika Lehmann said the young male koala, estimated to be about eight or nine months old, had been taken to Australia Zoo for treatment.

The 940-gram koala, which had been named "Doug", was in an induced coma.

He was found at the base of a tree at J Dobson Rd in Morayfield, Ms Lehmann said.

"Our rescuers got a call this morning about a little joey sitting at the trunk of a tree and his breathing was laboured," she said.

"Mum was 30 metres up in the tree, so we needed tree climbers to get her down, but the little boy was sitting at the bottom of the tree, so he was easy to get."

Ms Lehmann said it was unclear how long Doug had been suffering as a result of the attack.

"He was very lethargic and dehydrated, so we don't think this happened this morning or yesterday, it might have happened one or two days ago," she said.

"At first we thought he had pneumonia, but when he had an x-ray they discovered the two bullets.

"One is in the left chest cavity and one is in the lower abdomen."

Ms Lehmann said Doug's mother, which could also have been wounded, was also being assessed.

"I can't really say much about her condition, but it looks like she's OK," she said.

Ms Lehmann said she had never seen a koala shot in the area before, although she was aware of several kangaroos shootings.

"Morayfield is one of those areas that we feel koalas are still relatively safe, so it was really bad that we found him there," she said.

RSPCA spokesman Michael Beatty said the attack was disturbing, with the joey a "50/50 chance" of survival.

"At first glance, because it was a slug gun that was used, it's probably kids but we really need to catch those who are responsible," he said.

"All too often we've seen in the past the links between animal cruelty and other forms of violence down the track, so if this was kids they need to be made to be accountable for their actions now to nip something like this in the bud."

Mr Beatty said people could call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or the RSPCA Cruelty Complaints Hotline on 1300 852 188 if they had any information on the attack.'

Research shows abusers believe abuse is justified

A criminal psychology research article by Robert Agnew of Emory University, USA, entitled: 'The Causes of Animal Abuse: A Social-Psychological Analysis' presents a theory that explains why individuals engage in animal abuse.

"First, I describe the immediate determinants of animal abuse. Animal abuse is said to result from ignorance about the abusive consequences of our behavior for animals, the belief that abuse is justified, and the perception that abuse is personally beneficial.

Second, I describe an additional set of factors that have both direct effects on animal abuse and indirect effects through the above three factors. These additional factors include individual traits, like empathy; the individual's socialization; the individual's level of strain or stress; the individual's level of social control; the nature of the animal under consideration; and the individual's social position."

Animal abuse is no different to child abuse

As disgusted as nearly all Australians are with animal abuse, Australia's animal protection laws remain are inadequate both as a deterrent and as a punishment.

Wildlife killing and abuse is morally unacceptable and should be made a crime in the same way that killing or abusing humans is a crime. All that would be required is adding an animal section to the existing crimes acts around the country.

"A correlation between animal abuse, family violence and other forms of community violence has been established. Child and animal protection professionals have recognized this link, noting that abuse of both children and animals is connected in a self-perpetuating cycle of violence. When animals in a home are abused or neglected, it is a warning sign that others in the household may not be safe. In addition, children who witness animal abuse are at a greater risk of becoming abusers themselves." Read More

Our police are not required to enforce animal cruelty breaches. Instead it is relegated to an under-resourced, under-equipped RSPCA, which is at best a toothless force.

Australia should set a moral standard, establish a national squad within the Australian Federal Police to deal specifically with animal abuse. Australia needs to set up a central database on animal killers and abusers just as in the same way paedophiles are monitored as social deviants.

No more abuse!

Tiger Quoll
Snowy River 3885
Australia

A question to any West Australian readers: Which kangaroo was most commonly targeted by hunters in the mid to late 1920's? ... Well I'm being a bit unfair, the answer isn't a kangaroo at all as the answer is the western brush (or black gloved) wallaby. Around that period western brush wallaby skins were exported in higher numbers than red kangaroo or western grey skins. Which species is exploited most commonly these days? Well I can tell you it isn't the western brush wallaby, they are now listed as near-vulnerable. To the vast majority of Australians living in large cities the answer doesn't seem to matter anyway, the generic term "kangaroo" is often used when discussing anything macropod related. Kangaroo numbers being in "plague proportions" or the labelling of them as pests appears to apply to all of our larger marsupials.

Attempts to overcome Australians' reluctance to eat kangaroo meat

Red joey at foot

Over the last ten years or so the kangaroo industry, state and federal governments and organisations such as the FATE program have tried to shift public perception of the kangaroo image from pest to sustainable resource. They appear to have had very limited success. In doing this they have continued the tradition of grouping all of the exploited species under the kangaroo banner. Australians have been very reluctant to come to the party when it comes to eating kangaroos themselves, maybe it's got something to do with us viewing roo meat as something that is only fit for the dog. So what is the dog actually eating? Is it euro chunks? Diced eastern grey? Maybe minced Bennetts wallaby? The marketing of kangaroo meat for human consumption continues this trend. Why do you think that could be? Maybe it is easier for us to stomach roo meat when we don't have to put a face to it ... a sort of miscellaneous meat. Nevertheless a lot of us are still reluctant to dine on our national symbol. Overseas markets for kangaroo meat are notoriously unstable, for example : the Russian ban on roo meat imports last year, this may however be offset by the recent Chinese decision in favour of the kangaroo industry.

Eating kangaroo compatible with vegetarianism?

Of course there are many Australians who choose to be vegetarian/vegan. Often this choice of lifestyle is made based on several factors including personal health, animal welfare or viewing this diet as being more ecologically sustainable particularly in a warming climate. I would have thought that once an individual had made the choice to stop eating meat that right should be respected, it's not the choice for everybody but with the earth population rapidly approaching 7 billion people surely vegetarianism is not something we should discourage. To those involved in promoting the human consumption of kangaroo however, vegetarians represent a potential market. This was evident in the publication of an article in the Sydney Morning Herald last week when the term "kangatarian" was coined. The basic message is that vegetarians with animal welfare or environmental concerns should find kangaroo meat quite acceptable. This is due to the fact that kangaroos are killed humanely in the field and their presence on the Australian landscape ticks all the right environmental boxes. Surely this advertisement is the work of the Australian kangaroo industry, who else would recklessly attempt to add roo meat to the diet of a vegetarian? Well the university lecturer in this advertorial is Peter Ampt, the manager of the Future of Australia's Threatened Ecosystems program (FATE). The FATE program was the initiative of Professor Mike Archer whose book "Going Native" (now out-of-print) outlined the programs aims. Central to these aims was the phasing out of current agricultural/pastoral practices in favour of those utilising native animals and plants. The centrepiece (or stumbling block) for the program is the sustainable harvesting of kangaroos. Backing up Peter Ampt's claims is Sarah Doornbos, who is also involved in the FATE program though no mention is made of this.

The evidence contradicts claims of humane killing

Grey inpouch joey

It seems that a key part of their argument revolves around the humane killing of kangaroos as opposed to traditional livestock. This same tactic comes up again and again, a single bullet to the head is a clean, humane way of killing an animal. No argument there assuming that is always the case, the problem is that it's not that simple. Female kangaroos have joeys and those joeys depend on them for survival. The Code of practice for the humane shooting of kangaroos (or "the code") instructs kangaroo shooters to kill in-pouch joeys by crushing their skull or decapitation. In the field this equates to smashing their head against an object such as a towbar or just simply stomping on their skull. It is not only in-pouch joeys that are dependent on their mothers. For about a third of the time you can call a kangaroo a "joey" they have permanently exited the pouch, however they still require milk, protection and guidance from their mother. These little guys are the joeys-at-foot or ex-pouch joeys, they are the ones that stick their heads in their mother's pouch to obtain milk. This a key stage in the development of a kangaroo that usually lasts 120 – 220 days. The code directs shooters to kill these joeys by a single shot to the head, however these joeys tend to flee in terror when their mothers are shot. As kangaroos do not "adopt" other joeys in the wild their prospects for survival are very poor, most will likely starve to death or be taken by predators. How this can be classified as humane by Samantha Vine, Peter Ampt and Sarah Doornpos is to say the least, puzzling. I shudder to think what would come under the inhumane category, perhaps death by iron maiden?

Official Statistics

Of course the industry itself will counter this argument by claiming 80% of kangaroos shot are males. State kangaroo management data does not substantiate this figure. For example in New South Wales the long term average is 66.9%, in Queensland the figure appears to be somewhere in the mid 70's and in Western Australia the figure is close to 50%. There have even been years in WA when the figure has dropped as low as 47% such as 1993.

Scientific Debate?

The timing of this advertorial coincides with the proposed European Union ban on kangaroo product imports. John Kelly, the executive director of the Australian Kangaroo Industry has been busy defending the industry using claims such as the one mentioned above. He declares that this issue will ultimately be decided using scientific arguments. It is interesting that this scientific approach consists of misleading statistics and an online petition supporting the kangaroo harvest, John Kelly is the number one signatory and who is the organiser ... ? Professor Michael Archer.

The fate of a joey-at-foot also applies when its mother has been killed in a vehicle collision. A small joey may be observed returning to its mother several times on the roadside after her death. It makes for a very distressing scene, the joey will ususally attempt to wake the mother up by touching her and/or making sounds and may attempt to enter the pouch. If the mother had fallen victim to a kangaroo shooter, all that could be left behind are her head, forelimbs, tail, entrails, a discarded in-pouch joey and a lot of blood. Of course the skin-only shooter will leave behind the entire body ... minus skin of course ... what becomes of the dependant joey-at-foot returning to its mother now? This type of treatment would be unacceptable in the domestic livestock industry, how can anyone possibly classify the shooting of kangaroos as humane? In WA alone 30,000 joeys-at-foot were orphaned by the actions of commercial kangaroo shooters in 2007, that's about 80 joeys every night of the year. West Australian kangaroo kill figures are dwarfed by states such as Queensland where shooters killed over one and a half million kangaroos in the same year. It's very convenient for FATE or the kangaroo industry to withhold this information from those trying to make an informed decision on roo meat. The inhumane treatment of joeys occurs at night and often in very remote areas, visual footage is a rare thing. It's a shame that people such as those interviewed in this advertorial believe their agenda trumps any concerns about the kangaroo industry. Maybe it's just easier to misrepresent the truth when you're picking joey bones from your teeth.

On 30 November 2009 I wrote the following letter to Anna Bligh:

Dear Anna Bligh

It's time the Queensland kangaroo killing industry was shut down before kangaroos become extinct. At present they are abundant and it's best they stay that way for the sake of this country's ecology. Kangaroos have always benefitted the environment (unlike humans who destroy it). Read The Canberra Environment and Sustainability Resource Centre report found at http://www.nokangaroomeat.org/ACT%20biodiversity%20report%20final%20copy.pdf

Conservation Icon, Steve Irwin had this to say about the lie of sustainable wildlife use:-

"As the horrific propaganda of sustainable use of native wildlife continues, and those people pushing it continue to attack me and threaten us, our world's precious wildlife is suffering as a result.

"Since when has killing animals saved a species? The farming, killing, skinning and eating of native animals is a rife and evil industry, which operates under the cloak of science and lies.

"Crocodile farmers claim that since they started farming and selling legal skins, meats and products, they have single-handedly saved crocodilian species from endangerment. This is the easiest lie to expose. In the countries that the croc farmers claim success, it's actually established protection laws and enforcement that protects these animals.

"Example: - Australian Crocodiles and American Alligators fully protected and policed in the 1970's. This is the truth of the Crocs and Gators recovery, protection by law!

"Now for the worst possible news - BUSHMEAT! As a result of established wildlife and
conservation organisations backing the sustainable use of wildlife and actually supporting the 'killing' of native wildlife, they have created a market. Third world nations now see examples of modern nations supporting killing, eating and wearing wildlife for money, so now they're doing it. The latest and most horrendous markets created are in Africa, South America and Asia where enforcement of laws is impossible and even though the animals may be protected, the policing agencies have neither the money or power to do anything. So mass wildlife slaughter takes place unchecked.

'Sustainable Use' of native wildlife in so-called modern nations like Australia and the U.S.A. has inadvertently created a multi-million dollar 'bushmeat' industry, where local people kill native wildlife for meat, skins and products. Please don't blame the local people; it's not their fault! They're simply hunting for much needed money. The greatest wildlife perpetrators of today's world are those behind the driving force of 'Sustainable Use.'

"How are the Tiger Farms in Taiwan and China helping to save Tigers in India, S E Asia or
Siberia? They are perpetuating the market in Tiger products, which is the single greatest reason for the endangerment of Tigers.

"How are the Bear Bile farms helping Bears in Asia? Endangered. How did Mink farms help Mink in Europe? Endangered. How do Tuna farms help Blue-fin Tuna? Critically Endangered.

"Since when has killing any animal saved it? If wildlife and conservation organisations continue to support 'Sustainable Use,' then 'BUSHMEAT' industries and global endangerments will continue until all the animals have gone.

"We in the so-called modern world must set the examples. This current example we've set - that eating, killing and wearing wildlife products is legal and 'sustainable' is obviously the
greatest disaster for today's wildlife. If we don't eliminate 'Sustainable Use' now it will be too late.

"If we can destroy the market, we'll destroy the industry. Historically the only reason spotted cats, like Leopards and Cheetahs are still found in the wild, is because of peer pressure. It became 'uncool' and controversial to wear spotted cat fur coats, so the market was destroyed and the industry suffered. Slowly, less and less Leopards and Cheetahs were being shot for their skins, and just as well or they would've been extinct 20 years ago.

"If we can all refuse to buy, eat or purchase native wildlife products and express our disgust in the industry, then every single person can help slow down this incredibly disastrous wildlife atrocity.

NEVER PURCHASE NATIVE WILDLIFE PRODUCTS!!"

As you know, Australia has the worst reputation in the world for wildlife extinction having driven 38% of its species extinct in a short 230 years, species that have been here for millions of years living harmoniously with the land. Since Australia is party to the Convention on Biodiversity which has as its aim to reduce biodiversity loss significantly by 2010, isn't it time we stopped the sustainable use lie and started protected our ecosystems instead? We are in the midst of the 6th Mass Extinction caused by one species - homo sapiens - so it is our responsibility to act now. That means governments who make policies and enforce them.

IT's time to stop crunching out the same old drivel that the kangaroo killing industry is an important industry. It is driving kangaroos to extinction, destroying the land, making people and their pets sick, putting a nail in the coffin of Australian tourist industry (worth $73 billion) and heaping shame on Australia. It's time to put it to rest forever.

More Australians are beginning to wake up to the 'sustainable use' lie so don't think you can continue to pull the wool over our eyes because you can't.

Sincerely,
Menkit Prince

ON 18 DECEMBER 2009 I RECEIVED THE FOLLOWING REPLY:-

Dear Mr/Ms Prince

Thank you for your further email of 30 November 2009 concerning animal welfare issues associated with commercial kangaroo harvesting. I have been requested to reply to you on the Premier's behalf.

The contents of your message have been noted.

This matter has been referred to the Honourable Tim Mulherin MP, Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Rural and Regional Queensland for consideration.

Again, thank you for contacting the Premier.

Margaret Klatt
Acting Director
Executive Correspondence

The contents of my letter representing many hours of labour have been noted? Is this your idea of democracy? It isn't mine. I get the feeling governments do whatever they want and virtually ignore the people. What is it going to take to really get them to pay attention to us?

A friend of mine wrote to the local department regarding illegal kangaroo shooting in her town. Correspondence follows.

Fran Bailey, Australian Parliament House, Donna Petrovich, Victorian Parliament

Dear Fran,

I know you have always been prompt to respond to any of my correspondence with you in the past, but this time I would like to bring to your MOST URGENT ATTENTION a matter that has been making me SO UPSET AND UNWELL FOR QUITE SOME TIME NOW, that I have had to visit my local doctor to be subscribed medication to help me to relax at night time and try to sleep. This is certainly not like my normal behavior Fran, as I am a positive thinker, a high achiever and a normally very happy go lucky type person, but as a result of what has been happening in my local area over the past two years, my general well being has changed dramatically.

On almost a weekly basis, if not, every 10 days, I hear and sometimes see hunters shooting from dark until the early hours of the morning. There are lots of gun shots on each of these nights, some close to my property and others a little further away in the distance. The hunters are in utes or four wheel drives and have very high powered, bright lights mounted on these vehicles. On several occasions I have called the police, however, although reported, I have never seen or heard a police siren or received a phone call back from the police to say that they have investigated the reason for my call. I assume the shooters are hunting for kangaroos and I demand to know why!

Kangaroos are a protected species Fran and we have lost so many of our precious native wildlife since the February 7 bushfires, I think it is absolutely disgusting that we allow shooting and hunting of any kind to continue. . Australia has the highest rate of extinction on the entire planet and we have lost 38% of our wildlife in the short time we have settled here! This is a disgusting reality Fran and WE MUST NOT TAKE THESE FIGURES LIGHTLY! BY ALLOWING PEOPLE TO CONTINUE TO BLAST AWAY AT OUR WILDLIFE, ESPECIALLY OUR KANGAROOS, THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT IS HAPPENING!

TOO MANY POLITICIANS ARE SITTING ON THEIR HANDS RIGHT NOW OVER ANIMAL WELFARE ISSUES FRAN, FROM HUNTING OF KANGAROOS, TO ALLOWING THE JAPANESE TO CONTINUE WHALING !

So Fran, I am asking you to make a difference on this issue of hunting in the Yarra Valley. Fran you are always involved in so many issues around the valley and I can imagine you are a VERY compassionate person. So PLEASE FRAN, PLEASE DO YOUR PART IN STOPPING HUNTING IN THE YARRA VALLEY! OUR BELOVED KANGAROOS ARE A PROTECTED SPECIES !

I DON’T KNOW WHERE TO START, BUT I AM WILLING TO WORK WITH YOU ON THIS FRAN AND THE DSE NEED TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR ALLOWING THIS SHOOTING TO CONTINUE!

It always happens at night time and these poor nocturnal creatures do not stand a chance of survival against lights, guns and redneck hunters. This is simply not able to be policed out there, so heavy fines and jail terms need to apply and we must ADOPT A “DOB IN A HUNTER” POLICY!

I know I am not the only person upset by this nightly carnage, as I know other wildlife carer’s in the area, and they too are very saddened and sickened to hear and see these people murdering the very animals they are fighting to save. They are on stand by 24 hours a day to rescue, rehabilitate and release back into the wild, injured, burnt or orphaned animals, only to have them be hunted down and killed by low life moronic scum!

I know that I can hear and witness it on certain nights of the week, so what is happening in other parts of the valley that I cant hear or see! Kangaroos are being slaughtered everywhere!

I don’t know if you know this Fran, but I have seen footage of what goes on amongst these horrible people who kill the kangaroos. So many times they are under the influence of alcohol when they go out shooting and it often takes them several attempts to kill the poor darlings and when they get close to the injured or dying kanga, if there is a young joey in the pouch or at foot, they are ripped from the pouch and bashed against the bull bar until they are dead! These morons practice this form of killing whether they have been drinking or not Fran.

I am sorry to go on about this Fran, but you must be able to tell how passionate I am about this issue. I am particularly upset at the moment because I have heard at least 15 shots fired tonight since around 9.30pm. On two occasions in the past, I have got in my car (despite the protest from my husband) and gone to where I could see the lights darting around and hear the gun shots but unfortunately I haven’t been brave enough to approach these bastards as they are usually on land not far from my home, shooting.

I am going to sign off now Fran, as the shots are continuing and I am becoming more and more upset. I am very eager to hear your response.

Please do not hesitate to contact me either by email or telephone Fran.

Thank you in anticipation.

REPLY FROM DONNA PETROVICH'S SECRETARY:

From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, December 16, 2009 3:49 PM
Subject: Re: Kangaroo shooting

Dear Vicki,

Thank you for your email re the shooting of kangaroos.

If you could email me with your residential address I will send out to you some specific information regarding the shooting of kangaroos.

I look forward to your reply.

Carmel Clancy
Office of: Donna Petrovich
Member for Northern Victoria Region

84 Sydney Street, Kilmore 3764
Telephone; 03 57822011

Of course, no mail was sent to my friend ... not that it would do anything to ease her mind as long as the kangaroo shooting was continuing night after night. What is the result of this passionate letter? Absolutely NOTHING!!

If you have any creative ideas of how we can get through to these politicians, please share them with us by replying below ~ we would love to have some success for a change! In fact, we would like to have our democracy back because it sure appears that we don't have any.

Media Release by Australian Society for Kangaroos:

Wildlife groups are calling for an inquiry into the slaughter of half a million kangaroos in Victoria by farmers since 1999.

According to the 1975 Wildlife Act, Eastern Grey Kangaroos are a "protected" species!

Landholders in Victoria are being given permits to kill tens of thousands of protected kangaroos every year, even in good seasons and in areas not affected by drought. This is despite research showing that kangaroos do not compete with stock for pasture.

Kangaroos are also being shot without proper assessment of population numbers, locally or regionally, putting them at risk of local and regional extinction.

In recent cases, local residents were devastated to discover that permits has been given to kill the equivalent of the total population of kangaroos in Colac, Gippsland, and Bendigo, causing a public outcry for the unjustified and brutal killing of protected native wildlife.

Colac resident Carola Anstis and East Gippsland resident Valerie Hickey, recently had to stand by and watch as their local kangaroos were shot by local farmers.

“Why permits to kill kangaroos in the Marlo area (East Gippsland) are being given, is beyond comprehension. The land here where sheep and cattle graze is in excellent condition, and unaffected by drought.  Kangaroos are not abundant in this area, and pose no threat to stock pasture.

The DSE and farmers have a long association, and I believe the DSE feels obliged to comply with farmers wishes. This issue could be addressed if DSE provided farmers with accurate facts about our wildlife and the current research about their positive co existence”, said Valerie Hickey.

Carola Anstis is equally disturbed by the current situation and the destruction of kangaroos that live at her wildlife sanctuary.

"With regard to my particular case, and recent permits to kill kangaroos on my neighbours property, no assessment was made of the property with regard to pasture improvement and carrying capacity to determine whether in fact there is direct competition for food. No assessment was made as to whether the kangaroos are on the property all day, part of the day or just passing through, and no means of control other than the limited suggestions for gates in fences were examined before the permit to cull was issued.  

I refer to Wildlife Act 1975 and remind DSE that Eastern Grey Kangaroos are a protected species", stated Mrs Anstis.

“The research is very clear, that kangaroos do not compete with sheep and cattle for food, yet state and federal governments continue to allow the slaughter of millions of kangaroos every year across Australia based on this myth. In fact research is showing that kangaroos are beneficial to the environment and can enhance farm production if allowed to graze with stock”, said Nikki Sutterby,
Australian Society for Kangaroos.

The RSPCA has also expressed concern for the slaughter of kangaroos by private landholders and reported the following in its “Survey of the Extent of Compliance with the Requirements of the Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos”. (Prepared for Environment Australia by RSPCA Australia July 2002).

RSPCA Report 2002 Kangaroo Shooting Code compliance

“The cruelty associated with non-commercial kangaroo killing is neglected by the authorities and control over the number of kangaroos killed and the methods used is ineffective”.

“The consensus of opinion given by those associated with kangaroo management is that there is a far higher degree of inhumane killing of kangaroos in non-commercial killing.”

“There is no requirement for the license/permit holder to undertake any training in humane shooting or in firearms competency. In no state is there any system in place for monitoring the extent of cruelty associated with non-commercial shooting of kangaroos and it seems unlikely that any could be organised under the present method of damage mitigation”.  

If this government has it's way, "protected" indigenous animals will no longer be living in our State, except in parks, zoos and sanctuaries.   Victoria is already the most damaged and cleared State of Australia.  Native animals are being made the scapegoats for Victoria's demise when they are actually a part of our ecology, not environmental threats.

“In summary, the Code requires that when a female has been killed her pouch young must also be killed immediately by decapitation, a heavy blow to the skull, or shooting.” Is this how we treat our wildlife?

AWPC - Government sanctioned cruelty

PLEASE CONTACT VALERIE HICKEY FOR PHOTOS THAT EXPOSE THE HEALTHY PASTURE COVER ON HER NEIGHBOUR'S PROPERTY, WHERE KANGAROOS WERE AUTHORISED TO BE KILLED TO PROTECT PASTURE.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT

VALERIE HICKEY
03 51548581/0427548581/41079007

CAROLA AND RON ANSTIS
CARLISLE RIVER WILDLIFE SANCTUARY
PH; 52350202

NIKKI SUTTERBY
CO-ORDINATOR
AUSTRALIAN SOCIETY FOR KANGAROOS
PO BOX 524 CASTLEMAINE VIC 3450
PH; 0417354408

Now extinct on mainland Australia, the Tasmanian Pademelon remains a target of legalised poaching on the island.

Australia's Federal Minister for the Environment (etc), Peter Garett MP, controls and administers a legal code permitting various species of kangaroos to be killed for commercial gain and export of meat and hides. Nationally this permission is prescribed under the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos and Wallabies for Commercial Purposes' [The Code]

Under Section 3 of the Code, SHOOTING FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES', the following six species of macropods (marsupials belonging to the botanical family Macropodidae including kangaroos, wallabies, tree-kangaroos, pademelons):

1. Red kangaroo (Macropus rufus), in NSW, Qld, SA, WA
2. Eastern grey kangaroo (M. giganteus), in NSW, Qld
3. Western grey kangaroo (M. fuliginosus), in NSW, SA, WA
4. Wallaroo (Euro) (M. robustus), in NSW, Qld, SA, WA
5. Bennett’s wallaby (M. rufogriseus rufogriseus), in Tas.
6. Tasmanian pademelon (Thylogale billardierii), in Tas.

The Code provides that where a kangaroo is wounded, no other animals are to be shot until all reasonable efforts have been made to dispatch the wounded animal. Shot females must be examined for pouch young as soon as the shooter reaches the carcass, and any pouch young must then be killed immediately. Methods which are acceptable as causing sudden and painless death include decapitation with a sharp instrument for smaller hairless pouch young and a heavy blow to the head for larger pouch young.

And this is Australia's federal envrionmental code for its national iconic kangaroos.
Why don't American's shoot their bald eagles - the national bird and symbol of the United States? They have immense pride in their national iconic bird, that's why!
The Amercian Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus_leucocephalus).

Australians could learn from this association. Besides the immorality of slaughtering native wildlife, in Australia there is grossly inadequate monitoring of the poaching practice to ensure maintenance of species numbers and humane treatment. Poachers can't distinguish between kangaroo species, let alone distinguish threatened from non-threatened, let alone male from female. And do they care anyway? To a poacher, prey is money. It's as if Australian society is stuck in a colonial exploitative mindset. In 2009 we continue exploit our natural resources in the same way as we did in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Gilbert's Potoroo (Potorous gilbertii) is listed as Critically Endangered under the [EBPC Act 1999]

The following macropods are listed as Endangered under the EBPC Act:
* Rufous Hare-Wallaby (Lagorchestes hirsutus unnamed subsp.)
* Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby (Onychogalea fraenata)
* Proserpine Rock-wallaby (Petrogale persephone)
* Long-footed Potoroo (Potorous longipes)

The following macropods on mainland Australia are listed as Vulnerable under the EBPC Act:

* Black-footed Rock-wallaby (Petrogale lateralis) in the MacDonnell Ranges region and also in the West Kimberley region
* Recherche Rock-wallaby (Petrogale lateralis hacketti)
* Black-flanked Rock-wallaby (Petrogale lateralis lateralis)
* Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby (Petrogale penicillata)
* Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby (SA and NSW) (Petrogale xanthopus xanthopus)
* Long-nosed Potoroo (SE mainland) (Potorous tridactylus tridactylus)

Each State in Australia legalises killing of kangaroos legal under licensing conditions that requires the Code to be complied with. But where is the monitoring? Kangaroos poachers do not have to pass a test of species identification, so probably are killing these threatened species. Monitoring of the Code is inadequate to ensure compliance in respect of the humane treatment of joeys, the licensing of kangaroo poachers and of ammunition specifications.

Where is the list of annual prosecutions under the Code on Environment Australia's website? Doesn't exist!

In 2004, Wildlife Protection Association of Australia Inc (WPA) took the previous Minister for Environment and Heritage and Ors to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (in Sydney) challenging the ferderal government's decision to approve Wildlife Trade Management Plans in South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia. [Case Ref: Wildlife Protection Association of Australia Inc and Minister for Environment and Heritage and Ors [2004] AATA 1383 (14 October 2004)]

WPA argued that the Management Programmes should not be approved because they are inadequate with respect to the killing and locating of young kangaroos and of inaedquate monitoring of kangaroo shooting, amongst other justfications. But R Purvis Q.C. on 14 Oct 2004 rejected the challenge.

At the tribunal, "Mr Pat O’Brien maintained that in his observation shooters will kill a wounded kangaroo if possible, but if it bounds off then it will not be pursued. He also gave evidence about the practice of using "squeakers" – a large joey squeezed until it squeals as a means of attracting other kangaroos answering the distress call. The squeaker, once exhausted, is discarded."

"Ms Egan gave evidence that, according to her records, in 2003, this resulted in 39 per cent of red kangaroos taken being female. For other species the female take rate was lower. In South Australia 51.4 per cent of red kangaroos taken under the Plan are female."

"It was submitted on behalf of the Applicants that the Code clearly contemplates that "larger young" will be ex-pouch. Culling by a shot to the brain is the same method as that specified for the killing of adult kangaroos. Ex-pouch young are treated as adults in being subject to direct culling rather than being left to starve as a result of a mother being killed. However there was criticism of the suffering that resulted from adoption of this procedure in that there is no obligation on a hunter to pursue young-at-foot in order to kill them following the shooting of the mother."

The magnificent red kangaroo is the world's largest marsupial - the adult male stands up to 2 metres tall, weights up to 90kg and can leap 8 metres and travel at 65kph across rugged scrub terrain - yet it remains the target of legalised poaching in Australia's Red Centre.

Taxpayers should not be funding handouts to help "restructure" this vile and cruel industry.

How dare John Kelly of the despicable commercial kangaroo killing industry ask for handouts due to the fallout from Russia placing a ban on kangaroo meat imports!

The ban has been in force since August, after the Russian government agency, Rosselkhoznadzor, first voiced its concerns about
possible contamination.

Now the struggling Australian industry is appealing for assistance from the federal government.

There is too much hiding behind the shooters code of practice, and publicity that the action is humane. That deludes the public that it's all done without pain or trauma to the animals being killed.

Kangaroos shot at in the dark are easily traumatized, and they are very stress-prone animals. How could all these shots be "clean" head shots, without near misses? The code of practice is not humane. Who is responsible for setting the guidelines for what is 'humane'?

(art work: courtesy of Carol Drew)

How is butchering joeys in the pouch "humane"? What about at-foot joeys killed by foxes, or starvation? There is nothing "humane" about these massacres of wildlife, and it lies heavily on Australia's reputation as being environmentally and wildlife "friendly"!

This industry is over, and they cannot continue to promote it as "sustainable" or "humane". It is hiding the real cruelty and unhygienic conditions of these killings. These employees need to be retrained and re-educated so that they can be employed in some profitable and ethical industry, such as wildlife officers or tourism.

A Russian government agency says a ban on kangaroo meat imports could be quickly lifted if Australia satisfies Moscow's concerns.
The ABC understands the ban will also be discussed at a meeting of Australian and Russian government representatives in Moscow.

(photo: courtesy of Bernie, from Googong kangaroo massacre, ACT)

The harvesting of kangaroos is being successfully promoted by the kangaroo industry as free-range farming producing a healthy meat alternative to traditional meats.
Kangaroo "harvesting" has even been celebrated by some as having the potential to
restore Australia’s pastoral lands by reducing the numbers of damaging hard-hoofed
livestock such as sheep and cattle on the land. This report demonstrates that the
industry’s claims are only partial truths or outright misinformation. This report exposes
the realities of the kangaroo industry which include extensive and alarmingly
unhygienic practices, unacceptable suffering of both young kangaroos and adults and
the manufacture of false hope that kangaroo harvesting will alleviate environmental
degradation in rural areas.

The kangaroo industry will contend that only one to six percent of adults are mis-shot (depending on the state); when considering the enormity of the harvesting industry this equates to too many breaches of ethical practice. An independent assessment of occurrences of mis-shot kangaroos suggests that the percentages are actually much higher, possibly up to 40 percent.

Dror Ben-Ami, PhD
On behalf of Animal Liberation NSW
2009

Food will also be on the menu in Russia during Premier Anna Bligh’s latest overseas trade mission. She will argue against a ban on kangaroo meat imports.
She told parliament that products such as kangaroo sausages, also known as "kanga bangas", were a favourite in her household where her family dined on kangaroo twice a week.

This woman is clearly no lover of wildlife, and she is representing the people of Australia to promote the wholesale slaughter of our iconic animals! Already koalas in Queensland could be extinct in 7 years, and endangered lungfish will be wiped out by her Traveston Crossing Dam in the quest for population growth!

This atrocity compromises us in directly intervening in Japan's illegal whaling and protests over Canada's seal slaughter. Our kangaroo killing industry is on a much larger scale than these wildlife massacres.

The commercial kangaroo killing industry is the largest on-going slaughter of terrestrial wildlife in the world!

“It’s embarrassing for Australia that we eat our own wildlife ....I’m here to tell you it’s just not right. Simply do not buy, use or eat kangaroo products.”

~ Steve Irwin

No kangaroo meat website
Learn more at Stop kangaroo killing

PETITION

The Australian outback town of Mitchell lies in the Western Downs region of southern Queensland on the Warrego Highway just shy of 600 km west of Brisbane on the way to Charleville. Situated on the Maranoa River, the town of Mitchell was named in honour of the 19th Century explorer, and the town emerged as a pastoral town out of the farming of grains, beef and sheep. Tourism has become a strong drawcard to Mitchell and especially to its Great Artesian Spa.

But more recently, Mitchell's fame has been lowered to infamy with it taking on a reputation for becoming the home of the kangaroo slaughter trade.

"You see a lot of utes in Mitchell and the towns just like it that emerge from the roadside only to disppear again as you drive west through southern Queensland on the Warrego Highway. You can tell the ones that are driven by kangaroo shooters. They have racks for guns and long spikes upon which the freshly eviscerated carcasses are placed. One, parked just around the corner, has black steel bullbars with the words "roo raper" cut into them."

Besides the slaughter of Australia's iconic kangaroos for pet meat and indeed export for human consumption in fancy restaurant, it is the sanitary conditions that is shocking and a life threatening time bomb. Following the international biolab standards of Silliker, animal liberation chief, Mark Pearson says "the last time we did swabs here and in Charleville, they were alarmingly high in E.coli."

'The chiller doors aren't locked. When Ben-Ami opens the first, problems are immediately apparent. Bright drips from fresh kills are spotting onto another layer of older, duller, deader blood, which is particularly thick nearest the front. The lip of the door frame is so thick and sticky, the red's turned a dull, dark brown. Hairs are stuck to it.

'The carcasses are packed as tightly as possible. They hang from hooks by their legs, their heads and tails missing,gaping rents where their stomachs once were, leg muscles tensed visibly; severed necks poke into gut cavities; hundreds of paws hang in a grisly reach towards the bloody floor. According to their tags, they're four days dead.

"These are quite young ones, heads cut off quite low," Pearson says, pointing to a nub of spine that's jutting out just above the shoulder. "Most of them are cut too far back." To decapitate in this way requires significantly more effort than using the traditional method, with a slice directly beloiw the jawline. It also makes bad financial sense to remove most of the neck , as harvesters are paid by weight. Proof, claim the activists, that an illegal shot in the jaw or neck has been covered up.

'Pearson points to the floor. "They're bringing in new carcasses and hanging them above the floor, which has blood from old carcasses. Blood is a Petri dish for disease and contamination. This is a major breach of any export abattoir standards." he points to a small grey kangaroo that is caked elbow to paw in blood and dirt. "That's from the evisceration," he says. That's all supposed to fall to the ground. And don't forget, these would have been on the back [of a ute] for four, five, six hours, and it would have been 20 degrees. When you consider this is export meat...Uh-oh..."

Besides Mitchell, the roo rapers store their roo chillers at Charleville, Augathella and Blackall. The practice in outback Queensland is widespread.

To struggling towns in the outback like Mitchell, kangaroo meat is big business. "The Kangaroo Industry Industry Association of Australia says theirs is a business worth $270 million a year that directly employs about 4000 people" many in remote areas."
SOURCE: Sydney Morning Herald, Good Weekend, 23rd May 2009.

AusHunt, a website dedicated to hunting in Australia and it's hunters, advocates:
"Kangaroo shooting is a unique job and many people are involved in one way or another in Australia’s kangaroo industry. My advice for the wannabe ‘roo shooter? You’ll need to make a few phone calls to chiller-box operators in various rural centers to evaluate the impact another ‘roo shooter would have there. Then decide on a location. Before doing anything, take a week off work and go out with a qualified, professional ‘roo shooter and see what is actually involved.

Australia’s kangaroo industry is one of the only jobs in the world where a person can legally shoot wild animals fulltime for a living. Kangaroo shooting is a tough life with long hours, and a certain danger element. Depending on weather conditions (wind, rain), phases of the moon and drought, the kangaroo shooter may have a good or bad night. It can be a very irregular income earner.

Many shooters struggle to make money, some make a living, and a few make good profits of A$100,000/annum +. Dedication is the name of the game …. going out night after night and avoiding the temptations of the local pub. The upside is that the shooter is very independent and can lead an exciting outdoors life, totally using his wits, determination and shooting prowess to make money.

Okay, you like what you see and you’ve done your courses. Move to the rural center that you have selected and get a day job there, whether it be pumping gas or whatever. THEN, start looking around for properties on which to shoot and start off by shooting week-ends. See how you go, then move on to fulltime when you know that you can make money. Good luck!"

Kangaroo 'gourmet' recipe.

Australia's Defence Minister, Joel Fitzgibbon MP, has just been handed $26,950,000,000 to unjustifiably escalate Australia's military aggression, at a time when Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan says the world economy is gripped by the worst recession in 50 years. Labor's 2009 Defence White Paper indulges to the extreme, planning for so-called "Defence" (against what?) to receive some $146 billion in additional funding across the life of the White Paper to 2030.

Hypocritically at the same time, Fitzgibbon has rejected spending just $3.5 million to save thousands of Australia's grey kangaroos fenced in on Defence land at Majura training range just outside Canberra. And at a time when Federal MPs have just awarded themselves another pay rise of $4000 pa for 'electoral allowances'. It all stinks like British Parliamentary abuses.

Australia's kangaroos, stressed from people altering their habitat, have been denied their freedom to roam their traditional grazing lands due to it being bulldozed for selfish property development, due to drought, consistent shooting and from uncontrolled bushfires.

Despite wildlife ecologist Dr Dror Ben-Ami telling the review tribunal that the Defence Department has no assessments of any impacts caused by the kangaroos nor that the kangaroos pose any threat to any threatened species on the Majura range, Fitzgibbon has condoned the senseless slaughter of 4000 of a population of 9000 trapped kangaroos be shot in secret, just last Saturday, 9th May 2009. Fitzgibbon approved a similar massacre just on a year ago at the same place - it must be some idea of a sick sport to him!

Fitzgibbon says it is to reduce the kangaroos to 'sustainable levels'. How's the language?

How is this mass killing different to April 1994 when the Hutu militia hacked thousands of Tutsis to death in Rwanda, or July 1995 in Srebrenica when Serb General Ratko Mladic systematically selected and then massacred 8,372 men and boys 'of fighting age' (between the ages of twelve and sixty), or in May 2000 when the Sri Lanka Army used banned cluster bombs, multi barrel rocket Launchers killing 2,000 Tamil civilians in the island's north?

Just four days ago, 378 Tamil civilians were killed after Sri Lankan forces fired a massive barrage of artillery shells at Tamil Tiger rebels. Again the UN stands by - bit like how Pope Pius XII stood back while Hilter's Nazis massacred millions of Jews during WWII.

In these human massacres, the killers use propaganda to describe their victims such as 'terrorists', 'militants' and justfity the massacres as 'ethnic cleansing'. In each of the above human massacres, the UN has stood back and watched.

Like these human massacre, thousands of Australia's iconic kangaroos, have just as much right to life as humans, yet they are been similarly slaughtered in secret. Defence uses fabricated propaganda like the kangaroos being in “plague proportions” and “hordes” and “pests”, that their “populations have exploded”; that they “compete for pasture”; and the latest ludicrous example; “they are eating endangered species of grass”. All so as to spin the sick aim of "sustainable culling".

It's simply a ecological massacre. It has just been done in secret with approval of Joel Fitzgibbon. How is he any different to Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa?

This tragic massacre deserves to be written into Australia's history as...

...'Fitzgibbon's Massacre'.

Here is my letter to Professor Michael Archer, no reply forthcoming.

Dear Prof. Archer

I have read about the FATE program on your website and would like to share some comments.

Firstly, how can you consider this program to be helping conservation of kangaroos? How can 'sustainable use' apply to kangaroos when:

1. Their numbers have dropped up to 70% across the nation from 2001-2006 due to the drought and excess kangaroo 'culling' [1]?

2. Up to 80% females are killed. According to population experts killing 50% females is unsustainable [2]?

3. The report by The Australian Society for Kangaroos (a compilation of shocking facts from various government departments) clearly shows how kangaroos are on track to extinction. The fact that the biggest kangaroos have been shot out is proven by the fact that the average age of commercially killed kangaroos these days is only 2-3 years (21 kg) i.e. barely at reproductive age and just out of the pouch[3].

4. According to the Murray Darling Report, if kangaroos are killed in areas where there are less than 5 kangaroos per sq. km, that is a recipe for extinction. Yet kangaroos are being commercially killed in areas where there are less than 1 kangaroo per sq. km. [4].

Kangaroos are approaching, if not at, the tipping point beyond which kangaroos become extinct.

The FATE program will guarantee extinction for kangaroos. Entrusting the conservation of Australia's national icon to the very people who hate kangaroos the most (i.e. farmers) is like asking foxes to guard the proverbial hen house.

Australian government policy has already allowed 40% of native species to become extinct in a mere 220 years since the early settlers arrived. When are we going to wake up and stop this war against wildlife before it's too late?

White man's ecological footprint in Australia has been way too large - we are going through the 6th mass extinction of all species due to human beings' total lack of consideration for and understanding of the ecosystem in which we live. Australian government policy has already allowed 40% of native species to become extinct in a mere 220 years since the early settlers arrived. When are we going to wake up and stop this war against wildlife before it's too late?

Why would people come to Australia and spend $85 billion tourist dollars each year just to go to shopping malls, theme parks and zoos when those attractions exist in any other country?

It's time to end the ridiculous policy of making wildlife pay their way with their lives by becoming renewable resources to plunder for profit till none remain. If we don't become proper custodians of the land, we will lose our most precious treasure - our unique native animals. Why would people come to Australia and spend $85 billion tourist dollars each year just to go to shopping malls, theme parks and zoos when those attractions exist in any other country? What makes Australia special is our iconic wildlife, in the wild and in hordes!

What will happen when they become extinct? Shall we replace the kangaroo with a cow? Leaving an extinct animal on our national emblem would be too painful a reminder of our collective stupidity.

Professor Archer, with all due respect, do you really want to go down in history as the man who drove the last nail in the kangaroos' coffin? Kangaroos are the second most recognised international tourist symbol. We proudly bear them on our emblem and QANTAS jets fly all over the world with the image of a kangaroo on their tails. What will happen when they become extinct? Shall we replace the kangaroo with a cow? Leaving an extinct animal on our national emblem would be too painful a reminder of our collective stupidity. Perhaps now would be a good time to start contemplating what other animal should replace the kangaroo that is as popular and well known? Perhaps cane toads, foxes or how about concrete?

On Australia Day, today, we should be considering how to protect our national treasures, not eating them and feeding them to our dogs. The FATE program encouraging 'harvesting' of our native animals is a mistake of mammoth proportions.

Thank you for your consideration.

Menkit Prince

1. www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/trade-use/wild-harvest/kangaroo/population/index.html
2. H.H.Lavery 'The Keepers'
3. www.stopkangarookilling.org
4. AAT Submission, General Administration Division, NSW District Registry, No. 535 of 2007 (exhibit 13).
Re Murray Darling Report on quasi extinction - www.kangaroo-protection-coalition.com/nswaatappeal2008.html

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