Activists condemn cull

HARARE — Animal rights activists in Zimbabwe on Monday condemned a decision by the city council of Bulawayo to shoot stray dogs to curb incidences of rabies.

“This is an unacceptable method being used by the (Bulawayo) municipality and the department of veterinary services,” Edmund Lanca, chair of Zimbabwe’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), told Sapa.

According to the state-controlled Chronicle newspaper, 15 dogs had already been shot in Bulawayo’s Cowdray Park suburb after the council said it was worried about rabies.lanca said: “They (the council) want a quick-fix solution. The sad thing is that those strays may be owned.”

However, Bulawayo city council public relations officer Nesisa Mpofu told the Chronicle: “People should tie their dogs and not let them out in the street because they risk being shot. — SAPA