Animal Welfare Advocates Push for Nationwide Ban Citing Cruelty and Public Health Risks
Medan, Indonesia – Lina Ginting, proprietor of the renowned Mechio Restaurant, has garnered substantial success with her offerings of dog curry, barbecued dog, and dog soup, enabling her to provide her children with private education. However, Ginting, who has overseen the restaurant’s operations for the past twelve years, is now grappling with apprehension over a potential cessation of her primary source of income.
As authorities in various parts of Indonesia intensify their crackdowns on the dog meat trade, restaurant proprietors like Ginting find themselves apprehensive that a comprehensive nationwide ban might be looming on the horizon.
Ginting stated, “Fellow dog meat vendors and I have already conferred, and we are prepared to stage protests outside the mayor’s office if they were to render dog meat sales illegal within our locale. I cannot fathom the imposition of a ban. Deprived of the ability to vend dog meat, I would be left grappling with financial uncertainty.”
In recent weeks, officials in North Sulawesi made headlines by enforcing a prohibition on the slaughter and sale of dog and cat meat at the notorious Tomohon “Extreme” Market, a locale infamous for its macabre allure as a tourist attraction, juxtaposed with its notoriety as a symbol of animal cruelty.
Mayor Caroll Senduk of Tomohon heralded this “pioneering” ban, a culmination of prolonged advocacy by animal welfare champions who contended that the trade’s inherent cruelty posed needless harm while also elevating the risk of rabies transmission.
Parallel endeavors have gained traction across various regional and local administrations, with Jakarta authorities presently engaged in formulating local regulations aimed at criminalizing the trade. This concerted push is raising expectations that the capital’s actions could potentially pave the way for a comprehensive nationwide embargo.
In the city of Medan, Ginting’s dwelling place, a comprehensive prohibition on dog meat remains pending. Nonetheless, Mayor Bobby Nasution, who shares familial ties with Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, issued a directive in 2022 curtailing the “commercial sale” of dog meat within markets.
In response, Mechio Restaurant, which processes approximately ten dogs daily, navigates this ban by sourcing its meat through intermediary distributors or local community members keen on a direct transaction.
The restaurant also acquires former pets, exemplified by the case of Bimbim, a mixed-breed canine relinquished by its owner for slaughter due to size constraints at home. Ginting attested to the premium placed on former pets, as they tend to offer superior meat quality owing to plumper physique and juiciness, in contrast to strays.
“Dogs hold a special place in our hearts, but our livelihood depends on this trade,” Ginting affirmed.
Ginting’s husband, Mion Sitepu, attested that dog meat not only tantalizes the taste buds but is an entrenched culinary delicacy in Sumatra. The Batak people, a predominantly Christian indigenous subgroup of the island, primarily indulge in this tradition.
Sitepu articulated, “If it weren’t delectable, how else could I have sustained a livelihood from it over the past dozen years?”
Nonetheless, the trade remains enveloped in controversy, largely stemming from apprehensions regarding the proliferation of rabies and other diseases. Indonesia grapples with an endemic rabies presence, spanning across multiple provinces including all six in Sulawesi.
Lola Webber, Director of Campaigns at Humane Society International, portrayed North Sulawesi as a “hub for Indonesia’s inhumane and hazardous dog and cat meat trade.” Webber emphasized the unsettling cruelty and the unparalleled health hazards posed by open slaughtering practices and contaminated meat. She lauded the prohibition in Tomohon as a monumental stride for both animal welfare and public safety, aspiring for it to establish a precedent for other markets and leaders to emulate.
