Court grants injunction to stop shooting of strays

IPOH: The High Court here has granted an injunction to stop the Manjung Municipal Council from shooting stray dogs.

Judicial Commissioner Mohd Radzi Harun granted the injunction which was filed by Malaysian Animal Welfare Association founder S. Mukunan yesterday.

The proceedings were held behind closed doors.

Lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan, who represented Mukunan, said case management was set for July 28.

“From there, we will try to seek a declaration that it is illegal to shoot dogs in Malaysia,” he told The Star when met outside the courtroom.

Mukunan said the injunction was a good start for animal rights in the country.

He said the shooting of stray animals was not the solution and hoped for a more humane way to handle the issue.

“Many animal welfare groups are willing to cooperate with the local councils for a win-win situation,” he said.

Mukunan filed an ex parte application for the injunction after sighting the council’s circular on a stray dog shooting exercise from July 1-4 and July 6-11.

State Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Nolee Ashilin Mohd Radzi said the Manjung Municipal Council immediately suspended the exercise after receiving objections from non-governmental organisations.

“The municipal council will not carry out the operation and will look for other means to address the stray dog issue.

Nolee said the Manjung Municipal Council received 236 complaints between January 2019 and yesterday.

“In a meeting at the state secretariat on Monday, the municipal council received proposals to work together with some NGOs to address the stray dog issue.

“These include using traps, neuter-and-release programme to reduce the population without having to kill the dogs and also to euthanise an aggressive animal,” she said.