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What
is the government doing about the illegal
trade of dog meat?
Currently
the government is doing very little to
implement the law already in place to
protect the welfare of dogs in the
Philippines. Although it is not clear
exactly why, there are a few reasons why
this might be the case. First, it is
believed that some if not many of the
government officials partake in the eating
of dog meat at restaurants in Baguio City
themselves. Dog meat is often served as an
appetizer along with an alcoholic
beverage, making it more a more appealing
choice. Another reason is that the police
officials who are in charge of catching
and arresting illegal dog meat traders are
often bribed with money by the traders. If
an illegal trader is brought into court,
the trader usually pleas guilty as it is
cheaper to pay the low fine that is
charged than to hire a lawyer. Illegal dog
meat traders are rarely arrested and are
made to pay a small cost for violating the
law, even though the law says the
following about the penalty for violating
the act: "Any person who violates any of
the provisions of this Act shall, upon
conviction by final judgment, be punished
by imprisonment of not less than six (6)
months nor more than two (2) years or a
fine or not less than One thousand pesos
(P1,000) nor more that Five thousand pesos
(P5,000) or both at the discretion of the
Court" (Section 8).
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