Live export trade abuses human rights and animal welfare

Submitted by Louise Sales on Thu, 24/03/2011 - 16:44

Hon. Lynn MacLaren MLC, the Greens WA Spokesperson for Animals, cited the current debacle in Fremantle Port, which has seen the Bader 3 sheep ship delayed for weeks while union organisers argue for the human rights of the crew, as just one more reason to end live exports.

“If the live exports industry can’t even look after the basic human rights of its crew, how can it be expected to look after the welfare of the animals it is exporting?” says Ms MacLaren.

“The culture of live exports is incompatible with our modern values of animal welfare and human rights. By continuing to allow a live export trade the Australian Government is not only also contributing to animal welfare and human rights abuses but is also exporting WA abattoir jobs overseas. It’s high time this barbaric trade came to an end,” concluded Ms MacLaren.

The Bader 3 ship is currently loading in Fremantle Port, while the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) continues to negotiate for the significant amount of back-pay that the crew are owed. The Filipino and Pakistani crew have been paid less than half of their entitlements and have been compensated with as little as 60c per hour for overtime worked.

This ship is owned by "Arab Ship Management" in Jordan and chartered by the Western Australian based Livestock Shipping Services in South Perth.