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| Polls show a vast majority of French people to be against the use of animals for entertainment |
While France mulls whether to join a majority of EU nations in banning wild animals in circuses, the city of Paris pressed ahead Friday with its own plan to outlaw the practice amid fresh concerns over cruelty.
A proposal
was adopted by the municipal council late Friday that will see permits withheld
from 2020 for circuses that wish to operate in the French capital while
employing exotic creatures.
"We
can congratulate ourselves on this decision which marks a societal advance
desired by all French people," said Penelope Komites, a Paris councillor
responsible for nature in the city, adding she hoped the national government
would follow suit.
Polls show
a vast majority of French people to be against the use of non-domestic animals
for entertainment, and dozens of cities and towns have banned travelling
circuses featuring wild beasts.
But there
is no national ban and the country still has dozens of circuses confining
hundreds of animals -- roughly 500 according to anti-circus campaigners One
Voice, and more than double that according to rights group PETA France.
There are
no official statistics.
Most circus
animals are lions, but there are also tigers, elephants, two hippos, baboons,
macaques, snakes and parrots, camels, bears, ostriches and even zebras.
"The
number of animals has decreased drastically due to public pressure," One
Voice president Muriel Arnal told AFP.
But
hundreds still "live in tiny, tiny cages inside trucks. They have nowhere
to hide, they are stressed, and also they have nothing to do. Then they are
taken out for the show or for... training which is very violent... They are
never at peace."
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Worldwide,
abot 40 countries have fully or partially banned the use of wild
animals in circuses
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'Strong
announcements'
The controversy
was revived this week when a performing bear called Mischa died at an animal
refuge southwest of Paris, two months after he was rescued from owners who
allegedly subjected him to years of ill-treatment.
Mischa was
allegedly kept in horrendous conditions with two other bears owned by an animal
trainer couple, who displayed them at fairs and in restaurants.
Two years
ago, a circus tigress named Mevy escaped from her enclosure to roam the streets
of Paris where she was controversially shot dead in the name of public safety.
Circus
elephants and camels have also escaped in France in the past.
In western
Europe, 12 countries have a full, national ban on wild animals in circuses, and
another 11 have partial, species-specific injunctions, according to a map
compiled by One Voice.
Four
European countries, including France, have only municipality-level bans, and
two -- Lithuania and Luxembourg -- have none at all.
Worldwide,
about 40 countries have fully or partially banned the practice.
The French
government in April launched a working group to investigate the well-being of
animals in circuses, zoos and dolphinariums. In May 2017, the French government
banned the breeding in captivity of dolphins and killer whales.
And last
Sunday, Environment Minister Elisabeth Borne promised further "strong
announcements in the coming weeks".
Meanwhile,
Paris and about 65 other French municipalities have moved on their own to put
an end to the practice.
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The French
government in April launched a working group too investigate the
well-being of
animals in circuses, zoos and dolphinarium
|
'Life not
worth living'
Under the
new Paris prohibition, any circus that agrees to give up its animals will get
funding of about 50,000 euros ($55,000) over three years to help it adapt.
"It's
about time!" said Amandine Sanvisens, president of animal rights group
Paris Animaux Zoopolis.
PETA also
welcomed the move, which it said sent "a clear message to the French
government that it is high time to ban the use of wild animals in circuses at a
national level."
Arnal said
that for circus animals, "It is not a life worth living."
Many
"are not fed unless they perform. Then there is the beating... You cannot
force a tiger to jump through fire unless they are afraid of something that is
more frightening than fire."
A poll by
Opinion Way last month found that about two-thirds of French people object to
the use of wild animals in circuses, which only about 10 percent have visited
in recent years.
But circus
owners disagree: William Kerwich of the Cirque Royal defends the practice as a
"tradition" and accused Paris of playing politics "to get votes
in the next municipal election."
Komites
said the new measure cannot be enforced, for now, for two of France's biggest
circus companies -- Bouglione and Gruss -- who have refused to sign up
voluntarily.
The
Bouglione group owns the property where it hosts the Cirque d'Hiver in Paris,
unlike most other circuses which operate on public property.
The Gruss
group, meanwhile, will have no choice but to yield once its licence comes up
for renewal.
Polls show
a vast majority of French people to be against the use of animals for
entertainment
Worldwide,
abot 40 countries have fully or partially banned the use of wild animals in
circuses
The French
government in April launched a working group too investigate the well-being of
animals in circuses, zoos and dolphinariums.
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