Nude Protesters Converge On Australian Embassy As Australian Wool Boycott Resumes

dublin | animal rights | event notice Thursday September 29, 2005 18:38 by John Carmody - Animal Rights Action Network (ARAN) arancampaigns at eircom dot net ARAN Po Box 722 Kildare 087-6275579

Boycott Relaunched After Wool Industry Groups Fail to Come to the Negotiating Table and Improve Cond

FYI

For Immediate Release:
October 7, 2005

Contact:
John Carmody 087-6275579 [email protected]

Nude Protesters Converge On Australian Embassy As Australian Wool Boycott Resumes
Boycott Relaunched After Wool Industry Groups Fail to Come to the Negotiating Table and Improve Conditions for Sheep

Dublin, Ireland — Nude PETA members—with the Australian flag painted across their bloody bodies—will hold a lively protest at the Australian embassy against the wool industry’s refusal to embrace a landmark agreement between PETA and a prominent group of wool producers that would have resulted in an immediate reduction of lamb mutilations and an end to PETA’s international boycott campaign. Flanked by giant posters of bloody sheep and signs reading, “Australia: Stop Mutilating Lambs,” the naked PETA posse will officially re-launch the Australian wool boycott:

Date: Friday, October 7
Time: 12.00 noon sharp
Place: Australian Embassy, Fitzwilton House, Wilton Terrace, Dublin 2. (The Embassy is situated between Leeson Street and Baggot St Bridge, on the town side of the canal.)

This action in Dublin is one of multiple protests taking place around the world this week to mark the resumption of PETA’s international boycott of Australian wool after a moratorium was announced in August. The boycott resumes after two major wool industry groups, Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) and Wool Producers, flatly rejected a landmark agreement between PETA and the Australian Wool Growers Association (AWGA) that would have resulted in live export reforms and an immediate and industry-wide reduction in lamb mutilations.

The agreement between PETA and AWGA provided a timetable for phasing out mulesing mutilations (in which skin and flesh are sliced from lambs’ backsides with gardening shears) and would have ended exports of live sheep to countries failing to meet Australian animal welfare standards. AWI and others refused to do anything other than criticize the plan during the 45-day moratorium, despite the urging of major retailers—including Benetton, Gap Inc., Liz Claiborne, Lands’ End, L.L. Bean, Eddie Bauer, Jones Apparel Group, Nordstrom, and Ann Taylor—which have all expressed support for the PETA/AWGA agreement and interest in the new, more humane brand of wool created by the agreement. The new brand will provide retailers worldwide with wool from farmers who are part of the structured plan to end mulesing and live exports to countries that do not meet Australian domestic animal welfare standards.

“The wool industry has had 45 days to agree to consider the compromise agreement, but has done little more than lip service to their claims to care about animal welfare,”says PETA Europe’s managing director, President Ingrid E. Newkirk. “It’s only a matter of time before AWI and Wool Producers realize that they won’t be able to give their wool away until they agree to stop torturing lambs and sheep.”

For more information, please visit SaveTheSheep.com.