
Dog fighting is of course illegal in Britain, the home of many of the owners of the unfortunate canines. What few realise, including the local authorities in Mirpur — and other parts of the country where such contests take place — is that it is also illegal under Pakistani law. But animal welfare societies which function here, lack the necessary funds to take action or even lodge a serious protest. For the same reason, ‘sports’ such as bear-baiting or camel fighting also continue, despite laws to ban them and campaigns launched by international NGOs. The entire display, the laughing, the clapping and the cheering which accompanies it demonstrates our lack of humanity; our basic lack of civilisation. The law in this regard, of course, needs to be upheld. But any law will work only if there is an awareness and a realisation that such acts of cruelty amount to a barbarism we simply do not want to see continue in our society. Some way must then be found to uphold the law and bring the terrible Sunday spectacle to an end as swiftly as possible.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 24th, 2012.
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