CARA Welfare Philippines, a non-government organization that operates a low-cost veterinary clinic and that promotes responsible pet ownership as well as spaying and neutering as a means of controlling the population of stray animals in the Philippines, joins the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), other fellow animal rights and animal welfare advocates, and concerned members of the movie-going public in calling for a full investigation on the alleged slaughtering of an innocent dog, purportedly for the sake of art, in a scene in the movie Oro, which, if proven true, would constitute not just an act of cruelty, but a crime under Philippine laws.
It was Gandhi who said that the greatness of a nation could be judged by its treatment of its weakest members – the animals. In 1998, the Philippines has taken a step forward on this front by enacting Republic Act 8485, or the Animal Welfare Act of 1998. CARA Welfare Philippines, composed of its officers, employees, volunteers, donors, and supporters, is hopeful that the relevant authorities will take this matter seriously, and punish the perpetrators, if found guilty, to the fullest extent of the law.
Under the Animal Welfare Act, “the killing of any animal other than cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, poultry, rabbits, carabao, horse, deer and crocodiles is likewise hereby declared unlawful” except in certain cases that in no way include the production of a film for entertainment.
In questioning this act, CARA Welfare is in no way sending a message that the killing of the Camarines Sur miners (the subject of the film) should take a back seat to animal welfare; rather, our organization and our supporters wish to make it known that the welfares of both man and animal are not mutually exclusive. The act of killing a dog for a scene in a movie is not just gratuitous but is a heinous act that goes against both law and conscience. The incident, while truly unfortunate, serves an opportunity for our country to demonstrate that it is a humane and just society that does not condone a crime supposedly committed out of ignorance.