World Animal Day: Activists demand protection for blind dolphins, turtles

Seek comprehensive policy against poaching of threatened animals

DERA GHAZI KHAN: Rights activists took to the streets on Tuesday to mark the annual World Animal Day and call for an immediate end to poaching of blind dolphins and turtles.

The demonstration was organised in collaboration with civil society members from Muzzaffargarh, Multan and DG Khan.

The participants demanded a comprehensive policy against the illegal hunting of animals in Pakistan, especially Punjab.

Farah Gurmani, New Vision Foundation secretary-general, led the demonstration on Taunsa Barrage and walk for the rights of animals, highlighting the plight of the Indus blind dolphin and freshwater turtles.

Talking to The Express Tribune, she said the blind dolphin was being pushed towards extinction because of the negligence of the government.

The Indus blind dolphin can only be found in south Punjab between Taunsa Barrage and Panjnad Barrage on Indus River. The species is facing extinction due to extraordinary increase in fishing and hunting with no checks by the fisheries department.

While there are laws against fishing and hunting in Indus River during the dolphins’ breeding season, not a single FIR has been lodged in the past 10 years, the protesters claimed.

The walk participants lamented when the whole world was working towards protecting and conserving wildlife, the Pakistan government was doing nothing.

The protesters also raised the issue of poaching of freshwater turtles in Indus River. The turtles are smuggled abroad mostly to China.

Rashid Garra, a social rights activist from Multan, said hunting of freshwater turtles was banned after a survey in 2007 for protecting the species. After that, there has been no legislation on the matter to date.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 5^th, 2016.