SHUT DOWN Surabaya zoo, due to cruel and scandalous conditions.
SHUT DOWN Surabaya zoo, due to cruel and scandalous conditions.
Why this petition matters
A giraffe found with a beachball-sized wad of plastic food wrappers in its stomach has died at Indonesia's largest zoo, Surabaya. The 30-year-old male giraffe named 'Kliwon' had for years been eating litter thrown into its pen. The wad of plastic found in his stomach weighed 18kg (40lbs).
This is sadly just one example of the heartless cruelty brought on by lack of caring, funding, and education, inability to control breeding, as well as persistent suspicions that members of its own staff are involved in illegal wildlife trafficking. Let's not let these animals suffer another day. It is up to us to free these and more animals that could one day be housed in this torturous animal prison.
This petition is aimed at Kepada Ketua, the Head of the House of Represenatives in Surabaya Province, Femke den Haas at the Jakarta Animal Aid Network, Kristen Bauer Consulate General of the US Surabaya, Rahmat Shah, a 'big game hunter' who heads Indonesia's National Zoo Association, and Tony Sumampouw, an 'experienced' zookeeper appointed to clean up the zoo. Rahmat freely admits that "none of the zoos run by the (Indonesian) government are in good condition, but that Surabaya is especially troubled." While Tony has brought the zoo's mortality rate down from 25 to 15 animals a MONTH dying, out of the 4,000 it houses, this is clearly not good enough. He has admitted that he has all but given up. "Nothing short of a 'total renovation' is needed, he said, adding: 'We need to either think about privatising or transferring out some of the animals.' This is ALSO not good enough. This zoo must be SHUT DOWN PERMANENTLY. By signing this petition, you are telling Rahmat Shah, Tony Sumampouw, and the entire populace of Indonesia that this type of agression towards the creatures of this planet will NOT stand. It is time to put the animals first. They must be removed. And the Surabaya zoo must cease to exist.
I thank you, and so do all of the animals at Surabaya Zoo..