ILLEGAL horse fighting to the death is a Muslim tradition in the Philippines
Horse fighting brings out the Muslim crowds in Mindanao, where stallions are whipped up into a frenzy of sexual rivalry by a mare in heat, and then forced to fight to the death…all in the name of fun. “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” –Mahatma Gandi
THE OPINIONATOR Last February I wrote a post titled Muslim Run Dogfighting Becoming Rampant in the UK– I began the blog with the statement: “As far as I am concerned there is little more despicable than dog fighting.”
Well horse fighting to the death – conducted on the Phillipine Island of Mindanao – by Muslims in the name of “fun” & also as a source of gambling -is equally if not more despicable.
“Mindanao is the second-largest and the most southerly island, with a very different feel from the rest of the country. A variety of Muslim ethnic groups live here.”
Interesting but not surprising that you won’t find this clear muslim association to the Island population as well as to the festival/horse fighting mentioned in the article below. Let’s hope that Mindanao does indeed have “a very different feel from the rest of the country (Phillipines) because what you read & see below will undoubtedly make your stomach churn with repulsion.
It is past time for this Muslim tradition to be stopped – permanently!
23 Oct 2008 FAMILIES gather in their thousands and children climb trees for a better view of the festival taking place below. The crowd cheer and laugh – the object of their excitement a bloodied stallion kicked so brutally by another that its eyeballs have been dislodged from their sockets. Welcome to the vile spectator sport of HORSE-FIGHTING.
The savagery was BANNED there ten years ago but is still sickeningly rife deep in the jungles. These shocking pictures from a three-day fight festival held on Mindanao Island, in the eastern Philippines, show the “sport” in all its barbarity.
Normally placid stallions are whipped up into violent frenzies by sick organisers desperate to put on a show and make money from betting. A mare in season is tethered to the side of a filthy, makeshift pen to ignite sexual rivalry among the stallions and guns are fired into the air to panic them into violence.
In the wild, the gentle giants never fight to the death. Males clash over mates, as well as leadership rights, but the weaker ones give in to the stronger ones before they are seriously injured or killed.
Yet in the depraved, man-made heat of the fight ring, they are not allowed to back down and thousands of stallions are maimed, crippled or killed each year.
And it isn’t over quickly. These frequently ill-matched fights are drawn out for up to 45 minutes before a victor is declared.
Last night a spokesman for Canadian welfare group Network for Animals, who are campaigning to end the contests, urged Brits to add their voice. He said: “If people want to help stop these tournaments they should write to the Philippine Embassy in London and tell them they will not visit their country unless urgent action is taken.
Thousands of eager spectators travel long distances to see the beautiful animals pitched against each other in contests fixed by criminal gangs and corrupt cops. Trainers teach the horses how to fight and the nightmarish spectacles are big business in poor communities.
Campaigning veterinary surgeon Dino Yebron, who attends tournaments in the hope of saving as many horses as he can, says: “This is obscene. “The horses are trained to fight, trained to bite and trained to kick – and all this is manipulated by the trainers so they can win.”
Kerstin Alford, of animal welfare charity The Blue Cross, adds: “In the wild, it is normal for stallions to fight for the right to rule a herd but nature takes its course when the stronger animal emerges and the other retreats.
“These fighting rings, however, force the horses together in an artificial situation where they don’t have the option of backing down and literally have to fight for their lives.
“It’s truly appalling that this inhumane practice is allowed to continue and that anyone could find it entertaining.” UK THE SUN
Sky TV broadcast these stomach-churning fight images from the Philippines.
CLICK SCREEN to play video below, and turn on the sound
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