Animal Liberation Front
The activities of Animal Liberation members in Australia have made it onto the website of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), the clandestine radical animal rights group based in the United Kingdom and USA and the subject of recent Government anti-terrorist investigations.
The ALF Website, under the heading of “THE ALF > WORLWIDE ACTIONS > AUSTRALIA” refers to the recent unlawful entry by Australian animal liberationists into a piggery north of Adelaide where members chained themselves to stalls in a protest against farming practices there.
The Animal Liberation Front has been allegedly connected with numerous illegal activities, including attacks on research scientists and their homes, bombing of laboratories and the release of animals from laboratories and farms. The ALF website features photographs of balaklava-wearing activists in camouflage uniforms.
The Animal Liberation Front refers to the recent action by Australian animal liberationists as a “worldwide action”. They would no doubt also be supportive of other unlawful actions by some animal liberationists in Australia, including trespass onto farms and theft of animals, the vandalism of property on farms, the contamination of feed troughs on feedlots, the intimidation of farmers and their families and the more recent assault of the President of RSPCA AUSTRALIA at a fund-raising dinner.
RSPCA President Dr Hugh Wirth doused in red paint by Animal Liberationist
The RSPCA is opposed to any form of cruelty or exploitation of animals. But we fundamentally differ from the animal liberation movement in the methods we use to further our respective goals. The RSPCA is committed to working within the law and taking lawful action against those people who illtreat animals in breach of the law. Where we believe the law is deficient, such as intensive farming, livestock export and rodeos, the RSPCA seeks to inform the community about our concerns and to lobby governments and animal industries to improve laws and animal handling practices. We do this every day in some way. Animal rights activists/liberationists often use brazen and unlawful stunts to get the attention of the media to their cause. Of course, this is highly effective in getting publicity, but this is not the way of the RSPCA.
Every day of the year, RSPCA officers are amongst the community, teaching people better ways to care for their animals, rescuing sick and injured animals, and collecting evidence about illegal treatment of animals. Nearly all of this work goes unnoticed by the community at large, as we simply get on with what is a huge and important job. We do our work lawfully, ethically and effectively for the long-term benefit of animals.
Animal Liberation in Australia needs to clearly mark itself out as being different from the Animal Liberation Front.
5 comments January 12th, 2007