Please save the animals from a torturous life in small cages in Iran
- by: Niousha Naderi
- recipient: Environment minister of Iran, Mrs Masoumeh Ebtekar and Mayor of Shiraz, Mr Alireza Pakfetrat
Dear community,
The Ghremani family owns a zoo in Shiraz, Iran, in which all the animals are held in an undeserving situation in which they suffer greatly. On the private property of the Ghremanis, 110 other lions are kept and abused in a self-made camp in Shiraz. Due to the lack of space, the animals are lying on the top of each other in small cages. Some of the lions are already diseased and do not get any medical care. Apart from that, the lions are fed with house or street dogs in all kinds of varieties and with other live animals such as donkeys. Keeping lions to breed them in this way is unacceptable.
Videos about the animals can be seen on YouTube and photos of them here and here.
Lions are a protected species. It should not be allowed that endangered animals who are protected because humans threaten to them in their natural habitat in the wild, are held and abused with our knowing. It is an alarm call that we must respond to when endangered animals from Africa and Asia are found in startling amounts in Iran, either dead or alive in cages, and when they are bought, sold and traded without any rules.
Please read the petition letter, sign and share it!
Dear Mrs. Masoumeh Ebtekar, Environment Minister of Iran, and Mr. Alireza Pakfetrat, mayor of Shiraz,
The Ghahremani family owns a zoo in Shiraz, Iran, in which all the animals are held in an undeserving situation in which they suffer greatly. On the private property of the Ghahremanis, 110 other lions are kept and abused in a self-made camp in Shiraz. Due to the lack of space, the animals are lying on the top of each other in small cages. Some of the lions are already diseased and do not get any medical care. Apart from that, the lions are fed with house or street dogs in all kinds of varieties and with other live animals such as donkeys. Keeping lions to breed them in this way is unacceptable.
Mr. Mohamed Ali Ghahremani has already declared publicly that the lions were transported for sale to a local circus. However, breeding animals as he is doing will only cause a lot of new animals to suffer in different ways. This is why animal rights groups are fighting to close circuses as soon as possible. But the question is: What will Mr. Ghahremani do with all his lions once he cannot sell them to circuses anymore? We are deeply concerned about these lions' lives. They are expensive to keep especially when there are so many, though it is profitable for Mr Ghahremani to sell their fur. All of this is why we see this matter as very urgent.
Lions are a protected species. It should not be allowed that endangered animals who are protected because humans threaten to them in their natural habitat in the wild, are held and abused with our knowing. It is an alarm call that we must respond to when endangered animals from Africa and Asia are found in startling amounts in Iran, either dead or alive in cages, and when they are bought, sold and traded without any rules.
We hereby deliver to you, Mrs. Masoumeh Ebtekar, environment minister of Iran, and you, Mr, Alireza Pakfetrat, mayor of Shiraz, this collection of signatures from people from all over the world. All of these people have chosen to take part in the destiny of the lions and all the other animals in Mr. Ghremani's zoos, circuses or animal camps. We beg you to take immediate actions about the following points:
1. The legality of the private trade with protected animals that the family Ghahremani is running shall be proven by an international proceeding.
2. The miserable accommodation and provisioning of the lions is to be remedied immediately. The local authorities shall hold Mr Ghahremani and his family establishment liable. Instant and proper provision for all living animals should be unconditionally prioritized.
3. Local animal rights groups in Iran need international support for the accommodation and provisioning of the lions and all the other animals as there are so many of them. An intensive collaboration with those groups is essential for the sake of protecting these lions.
4. The members of the Ghahremani family shall be prevented by law from owning or trading any kind of animal. Their zoo in Shiraz shall be handed over to local animal rights groups and taken down step-by-step or be converted into an animal shelter.
5. All the facilities in Iran which hold animals for the entertainment and pleasure of humankind shall be systematically and precisely proved for their quality of life in cooperation with the local animal rights groups. Quality of life means that all the captive animals shall have a reasonable and dignified life.
To protect nature and animals is also to protect human being. We ask you to take the voices of the people and of the conservation and animal welfare organizations seriously and to give them a voice in the political arena. Their voices are talking about the future of our children. We are not allowed to destroy the animals' habitat and all the beauty on this planet.
We wish that Iran will become a role model about the way that living beings and nature shall be treated by human beings. It is a big wish – but the first steps in the right direction are very small, manageable and will bring a huge result. We ask you, Mrs. Masoumeh Ebtekar and Mr. Alireza Pakfetrat, to be a part of those first steps and support the wish we have for our future.
Yours sincerely,
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