Lai lauds Taiwan's animal protection progress at int'l welfare conference

Taipei, Aug. 26 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on Tuesday lauded Taiwan's progress in animal protection, highlighting the country's achievement of ending the euthanasia of stray animals, at an international animal welfare conference in Taipei.

"Our central and local governments have continued to work with animal protection groups to promote a humane capture-neuter policy to reduce the stray animal population," Lai said in his opening remarks at the Asia for Animals Coalition (AfA) Conference.

Lai recalled that before his tenure as mayor of Tainan from 2010 to 2017, more than 12,000 stray animals were euthanized each year in the southern city.

"But we achieved zero euthanasia, out of respect for life," Lai told more than 600 animal welfare activists from over 30 countries at the conference, adding that every animal in Taiwan is now "fully protected" through legislation.

Taiwan officially ended the euthanasia of stray animals in 2017, after an amendment to the Animal Protection Act mandated that all public shelters cease the practice.

Lai also highlighted other milestones in Taiwan's animal protection efforts, including the establishment of the Department of Animal Welfare under the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) in 2023 and last year's amendments to regulations on animal exhibitions "to strengthen welfare standards and inspection mechanisms."

AfA Co-CEO Sirjana Nijjar expressed her "heartfelt gratitude" to Lai, saying it was the first time in her career she had seen a president attend an animal protection conference, "truly showcasing your commitment to the cause of animals."

Introducing AfA as the largest network of animal protection organizations in Asia, Nijjar said the reason the coalition has been advocating change for the past 25 years is to "do it for the animals who cannot speak for themselves."

She added that mainstream Asian religious philosophies such as Buddhism and Hinduism regard "compassion for sentient beings as one of their core tenets."

Responding to Lai's remarks, Chu Tseng-hung (朱增宏), executive director of Environment & Animal Society of Taiwan, said in his keynote speech that Taiwan's stray dog problem has in fact not been resolved, describing progress as "one step forward, one step back."

According to MOA data, the estimated number of stray dogs in Taiwan was 146,773 in 2018, 155,869 in 2020, 159,697 in 2022, and 141,584 in 2024 -- showing a fluctuating trend over the past seven years.

He said the stray dog situation has even led to conflicts with wildlife conservation, urging different groups -- those who care about cats and dogs and those who focus on wild animals -- to "consider the animals that others care about."

Chu also criticized the MOA for what he called "tokenism," noting that although the Food and Agricultural Education Act, which includes provisions on animal welfare, has been in place since 2022, its implementation over the past two years has been largely superficial.

"Every day, more than 10,000 pigs are sent to live auction markets, which is extremely cruel," he said, showing a video from the markets that depicted practices such as electric prodding and pigs being piled and rammed against one another.

In terms of poultry, Chu said that more than 70 percent of egg-laying hens in Taiwan are kept in cages with limited space, rather than being raised in cage-free environments.

While Taiwan produces world-class semiconductors, much of its egg and pork production still relies on practices that abuse animals, he added.

Since 2001, the AfA Conference has been held biennially in different cities across Asia, with Taiwan serving as the host for the first time this year.

With the theme "Reflection and Breaking Boundaries," the three-day event, running from Tuesday to Thursday, features speeches, plenary sessions, and workshops on a range of animal welfare topics.