Sweet symphony
‘We will be part of revision process’ - Borg will wait for end of consultation with stakeholders in karozzini debate
Transport Minister Ian Borg will wait for Parliamentary Secretary for Animal Rights Clint Camilleri to finish his consultation process with the various stakeholders involved in the recent issues concerning house-drawn carriages.
“I took note of what he said. We have spoken about the issue and I will wait for the end of his consultation. At Transport Malta we mainly work with the licensing of horse-drawn carriages, but we will be part of the revision process,” Borg told The Malta Independent yesterday.
Two horses collapsed in the space of a week, one of them dying, leading to public outrage directed at the conditions these animals are facing in the sweltering heat.
Following the incidents, Parliamentary Secretary for Animal Rights Clint Camilleri expressed his concern over the current situation, highlighting the need for a holistic revision of the laws regulating horse-drawn carriages.
The PN has also indicated as such, with the party’s spokesperson for animal rights Maria Galea saying that measures should be taken to ensure that the horses are protected in the summer months, suggesting that the Animal Welfare Department should meet with the karozzin owners to discuss the way forward.
The Saturday after the initial incidents, dozens of activists gathered at Triton Fountain in Valletta to protest against the use of horsedrawn carriages, calling for a gradual ban of the practice.
Speaking at the event, representative Animal Liberation Malta Robert Xuereb explained that “having horses work in such conditions is not a compromise.”
“This is animal abuse – plain and simple. Tradition is the word they use, and tradition is an excuse. If you are hurting others then it is time to stop. There was a time when we called slavery tradition, in Spain bullfighting is a tradition. When traditions trample others’ rights, then it is time to change them,” he continued.
Activists have said that a complete immediate ban on horsedrawn carriages would be a hurried and unrealistic demand, most likely resulting in the slaughter of all the horses,
Animal rights activist and TV presenter Moira Delia previously told The Malta Independent that a better and more realistic solution to the situation would be the imposition of a time-frame ban for the summer months, suggesting a prohibition of use from July up to mid-September between 12 and 4:30 pm.
‘An eye-opener on the need for urgent action’
Government intervention through better regulation on how and when horses can be used on our roads coupled with measures to buttress the social impacts of such measures is long overdue, Alternattiva Demokratika Chairperson Carmel Cacopardo said yesterday.
“The recent two incidents involving horse-drawn carriages (karozzini), with one horse ending dead on the road, should be an eyeopener on the need for urgent action. This should lead to more acceptable conditions in which horses are utilised.
“Primarily it should lead to the withdrawal of horses from our roads in very hot weather between noon and 4pm. The social impact of such a measure should also be addressed forthwith. Alternattiva Demokratika, stated Cacopardo, calls for immediate action which will not just protect the horses but which will also, in the difficult circumstances arising assists the horse owners most of whom do not have any alternative source of income.”