The SPCA vs. The Human Rights Commission

This has been posted long after I originally wrote this entry (23 January 2007)

Over the weekend Tony Yengeni, former chief whip for the ANC, celebrated his release from prison on corruption charges. A major motivation for this party was thanking the ancestors for their intervention. The ancestors are an important part of African culture in South Africa, and are the reason why people slaughter -- to commune with the amadlozi (ancestors). An important part of slaughtering is that the animal bellows in a certain way. In order to achieve this bellow, according to Chief Holomisa, Chief of the Thembus, is what alerts the ancestors that the slaughtering is taking place. The media who had been invited to the ceremony/party got footage of Mr. Yengeni stabbing the bull. Others claimed that he pricked and did not stab what was an ox and not a bull. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), have demanded that Mr. Yengeni pay the fine that according to the constitution must be paid for acts of animal cruelty; however, many think that Mr. Yengeni has proved himself above the law in response to to the circumstances surrounding his premature release. What has caused the controversy is that slaughtering is an important part of African culture/spiritual beliefs, and forcing Mr. Yengeni to pay the fine would be a violation of his human rights according to the constitution. I would have to be in agreement with this opinion. My grandfather, adhered very strictly to this tradition, even as a minister and very deeply religious christian. On the two occasions that my family visited South Africa during apartheid, he slaughtered a sheep for each of us, as well as for other family members visiting from exile. All major events such as funerals, weddings and baptisms etc are marked by slaughtering. Even in America my parents slaughtered a sheep for my baptism and I still have the cured sheep skin.
This opened up a very interesting dialogue in the South Africa media, as it was not heavily tainted by political allegiances, and involved the voices of everyone from traditional leaders to irate callers. The Human Rights Commission has responded to the SPCA, claiming that their allegations were insensitive, as well as an attempt to "impose eurocentric morality". Traditional leaders such as Bantu Holomisa, have also been responding to the SPCA in news programs on radio and television, as well as in printed news, as experts on the tradition. They claim that animals are not supposed to be ill treated as according to the culture: "no ancestor would accept an animal that is being abuse". Many are also offended by the service provided the SPCA to tranquilize the animals before slaughterings, as this defeats the purpose by interfering with the animal's ability to bellow. In recent segments on SAFM, those in support of slaughtering sited examples of European hunters hunting game such as impala, as being just as cruel. They went on to compare these animals being primarily hunted for sport and not necessarily for food, to the stipulation in the tradition that the entire animal must be eaten when slaughtered. I have even been offered meat from the hoof of a cow on more than one occasion.
On female listener sent in an SMS that stated : "Black people [in South Africa] will always slaughter. They just need to get used to it, and leave us alone -- we just black like that". I think that rather than making people slaughter less it will make them do it more, as it will remind many of a cultural obligation that they may have been neglecting.