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Dog slaughter at BMICH?

15 Aug 2021

  • A dozen dogs allegedly killed 
  • BMICH refutes allegations
 BY Buddhika Samaraweera There are numerous posts circulating on social media platforms, in particular on Facebook, regarding an incident where between 12 and 14 dogs that were staying at the premises of the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo have allegedly been injected with poison and their bodies dumped somewhere in the Negombo area. The posts alleged that the dogs had been injected in this manner on 8, 9, and 10 August. Some individuals claimed to have witnessed the dogs becoming disoriented following the receipt of injections and howling in pain, after which they had been thrown several feet into the back of a lorry by some individuals. “The throwing into the lorry itself would cause fatal bone fractures in an event any dog survived the injections,” one such post read. It is further alleged that a lactating mother of four puppies has also been poisoned in this manner and the said four puppies, according to the much-shared social media posts, are now with an animal welfare activist. Several attempts to contact BMICH Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sunil Dissanayake for clarification were unsuccessful. However, in a communication that reached The Morning through a close associate of his yesterday (15), Dissanayake has refuted the claims presently circulating on social media. “The management of the BMICH refutes the false claims presently circulating on social media that we are eradicating stray dogs roaming in our premises, by poisoning and killing them. These claims are completely untrue,” it said. However, in the same communication, he has stated that a large number of stray dogs find their way into the BMICH premises and cause many problems to its customers, visitors, and staff. According to him, the BMICH customers have been attacked by these dogs on four or five occasions. The release further read: “These dogs attacked a staff member about two months ago who had to be administered rabies injections and medical care.” Adding they have received numerous complaints from the parents of students who attend various classes held in the buildings at BMICH premises, Dissanayake, in the communication to us, has claimed that the parents state that they feel extremely unsafe with the large packs of stray dogs at the BMICH premises.  Dissanayake has also stated that before the dogs began to attack their customers and staff, they undertook a joint programme with Embark (an animal welfare organisation) to vaccinate and sterilise the dogs there. The Morning spoke to Embark Founder Otara Gunewardene to verify this statement. “That vaccination programme was conducted way back in January 2020,” she said, and added that if there was any help needed recently, BMICH could have contacted Embark. She also said that she is unsure of all the details but emphasised that there are better ways to handle such a situation. Dissanayake, in the statement, has also mentioned that the dogs were taken away by the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) in an official manner. “This was carried out as we did not wish to drive out the stray dogs and thought that we could allow them to remain in our premises, while making it safe for our customers. However, an increasing number of dogs began to appear and under these circumstances we had no other choice but to have the dogs taken away officially by the Colombo Municipal Council,” the statement claimed. However, the CMC denied Dissanayake’s statement, stating that the CMC had no involvement with this incident. Speaking to The Morning, CMC Chief Veterinary Surgeon Dr. M. Ijas said: “We even have restricted our day-to-day activities because of the Covid-19 pandemic situation. We do not do any unnecessary stuff. We did not get any invitation from the BMICH in the recent past.” In the statement, Dissanayake has also charged some individuals, claiming the latter group is spreading false propaganda in this manner on social media.  Commenting on the said group, Dissanayake has stated: “We are aware that this smear campaign is being carried out by a few persons, who go around Colombo feeding stray dogs, who have barged into the BMICH premises, many times, purportedly to feed the stray dogs. The BMICH Police Unit informed them that they had entered in an unauthorised manner and without permission were trespassing on our premises and were not adhering to health regulations such as wearing masks. They were warned and sent away.” He also commented on some photos being shared with social media posts related to the above incident and claimed that they have been taken elsewhere. “These persons have clearly used photos taken elsewhere, for their lying and irresponsible smear campaign.” However, the relevant photographs appear to have been captured at the BMICH premises and when contacted by The Morning, the BMICH Police Unit stated that an investigation is being carried out by the Cinnamon Garden Police Station with regard to them. Attempts to contact the Cinnamon Garden Police Station to inquire about the said investigation proved futile. Further adding that the BMICH follows strict regulations during the Covid-19 pandemic, including not permitting any unauthorised persons to enter the premises, Dissanayake said: “We inform those who forcibly enter our premises to feed the stray dogs therein, if they are true dog-lovers, to take away these dogs for adoption, in the same way that Embark has been doing, to the best of their ability.” He also said that the importance of animal life and their protection should be appreciated, but their main responsibility is to ensure the safety and security of customers and staff. “We strongly request the persons carrying out this smear campaign to be more responsible and civic-conscious, not only towards stray dogs but also to our citizens,” he urged.   

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