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Cairo: Next week is the celebration of Eid

December 05, 2008, 12:6AM MT

By Sharon St. Joan

SPARE appeals for kindness to the sheep

SPARE appeals for kindness to the sheep

Unfortunately, the celebration of Eid, meant to be a holy day, is marked by the slaughter of many animals for the feast which takes place then.

In reading the letter below, let's keep in mind that animals are slaughtered for food in all countries--and the process is never humane. So, it may be missing the point to feel that some cultures are more unkind than others. The main difference lies in where the animals are being killed. In western countries, farm animals are generally killed behind closed doors, far from public view--so "out of sight, out of mind."

In Egypt and in many countries, farm animals may be purchased at markets and then killed on the street. Many poor Egyptians cannot afford to eat meat often, so this slaughter tends to happen en masse at special holidays, like Eid, which will be coming up next week. Let's keep the sheep and cows of Egypt, especially, in our thoughts and prayers, while not losing the awareness that the slaughter of animals is, sadly, happening everywhere, sometimes visibly and sometimes hidden.

This is a poster done by a volunteer for the Egyptian group, SPARE, calling on Egyptians to show some level of compassion to the animals who are being slaughtered. This is the English version. Warning: the underlying reality is very gruesome, but the appeal is given without condemnation or judgment--and for that reason, more likely to reach people and hopefully, perhaps moderate their behavior towards the sheep.

Amina Tharwat Abaza, Founder and President of SPARE writes:

"The Eid El Kebir will be celebrated next week; SPARE member and volunteer Miss Bassna Hassan has designed these posters to ask all Muslims to be compassionate to the sheep, and to avoid unnecessary suffering to them.

"Pray for all the sheep who will be slaughtered next week and PLEASE forward these posters to all Muslims you know.

Thank you ALL,"

Amina

What you can do

To visit the website of SPARE, the Society for the Protection of Animal Rights in Egypt, please go to

http://www.sparelives.org

Top photo: © Alfonsodetomas / Dreamstime.com

Second photo: SPARE / Poster by Bassna Hassan

Posted by Sharon St. Joan, Best Friends Network

Comments

Posted December 05, 2008, 10:55AM by Mariana

Quaker Concern for Animals in Britain is holding all these poor creaures in the Light - and also those who have the power of life and death over them.
Thank you, Amina and Bassna.
Marian.

Posted January 09, 2009, 8:50PM by PamelaB

I used to live in Greece and was annually horrified and saddened as Easter rolled around. Behind the mysterious and beautiful and sensual and rich celebration of the Easter holidays--unlike anything else in the West--was always the underlying cruelty of all those little dead lambs, carcasses turning endlessly on the spit in every backyard. I imagined the horror and suffering for the lambs, who were truly sacrificial.

So thank you, Amina and Bassna, for spotlighting the plight of sheep during Eid. It's that first major step, however slight it might seem, that puts them on the map!