A report released by Australia’s Inspector-General of Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports highlights ongoing and systemic failures within Australia’s Independent Observer program designed to provide independent reporting of animal welfare at sea.The program was established after the 2017 death of over 2,400 sheep on the livestock carrier Awassi Express (now Anna Mara).
The Australian Alliance for Animals and the RSPCA have expressed dismay over the decision by Australia’s Department of Agriculture to allow the re-export of more than 15,000 sheep on board the Bahijah to the Middle East.Originally, 16,000 Australian sheep and cattle were onboard the Bahijah for over a month after the vessel departed from Australia and then turned back from the Middle East due to
The RSPCA has welcomed the tabling of the Australian federal Minister for Agriculture's response to one of the largest Australian parliamentary e-petitions in history, calling for an end to live sheep export.Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Murray Watt, stated: “The Australian Government acknowledges the considerable community concerns about animal welfare in the trade of live