Blog

Campaign updated on 3/23/2023.

Borough of Fort Lee Mayor Mark J. Sokolich: Tell your Sister City, Namyangju, South Korea, that you oppose the torture and consumption of dogs and cats.

If you want to help fight the grisly South Korean dog and cat meat trade and make a difference in South Korea, here are a few quick actions you can take that could save millions of dogs and cats each year.

Namyangju became a Sister City to the Borough of Fort Lee, New Jersey, in 2020.

In Namyangju, there are numerous dog farms, slaughterhouses, markets, and restaurants where the dogs, who have been tortured their entire lives, end up being slaughtered in the most inhumane ways, such as by electrocution, hanging, or beating; and then thrown into boiling water – sometimes while they are still alive. In many places, dogs are being killed in full view of other terrified, caged dogs; and this takes place in broad daylight. In addition, many abandoned and stolen former pets end up in this industry and are subject to the same cruelty. 👉 Click HERE for a partial list of dog farms and slaughterhouses in Namyangju.

Video: What’s happening in a dog farm in Namyangju, South Korea. KBS animal TV : animal4u

Video: Dog farm/slaughterhouses in Namyangju, South Korea. Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth (CARE).

A Search Engine reveals the sickening scale of Namyangju’s dog meat demand.

Two searches on Naver (the most popular search engine in Korea) – one was for so-called “Health Centers,” which commonly sell dog elixirs and cat elixirs (also known as dog soju and cat soju), and the second one was for “dog meat restaurants” – resulted in dozens of Health Centers and dog meat restaurants in Namyangju.

Even if half of these ‘Health’ Centers and restaurants serve dog and cat ‘ingredients’ in one form or another, imagine how many dog/cat slaughterhouses must be in the vicinity of Namyangju to supply these outlets.

There are laws in South Korea against selling dogs and cats for consumption, yet these laws are blatantly ignored.

Video: Dog farm/slaughterhouses in Namyangju, South Korea. ARK119.

Call for Action

• 📧 Send emails to the Fort Lee mayor and the Council members.

  [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];

  Send the CC (Carbon Copy) email to the Namyangju City Council, Gyeonggi-do Assembly, and the South Korean National Assembly members:

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• 📬 Send letters (Use the below-suggested message or petition):

  📬 Mayor Mark J. Sokolich and Fort Lee Council
  Borough of Fort Lee
  Municipal Building/Borough Hall
  309 Main Street
  Fort Lee, NJ 07024
  USA

  📬 Send a copy of your letter to Namyangju:

  Mayor Ju Gwang-deok and the Namyangju City Council
  City of Namyangju
  Gyungchun-ro 1037, Namyangju, Gyeonggi-do
  Postal Code 12232
  South Korea

  📬 Namyangju’s addresse in Korean:

  주광덕 남양주시장님, 남양주시의회
  남양주시청
  (12232) 경기도 남양주시 경춘로 1037
  South Korea

  📝 Suggested message

  Fort Lee Mayor Mark J. Sokolich: Tell your Sister City, Namyangju, South Korea, that you oppose the torture and consumption of dogs and cats.

  Dear Mayor Mark J. Sokolich and Fort Lee Council members:

  As mayor and representatives of Fort Lee, we ask you to reconsider your “friendship” with Namyangju, a city that permits dogs and cats to be horribly abused and brutally killed for food.

  While graphic, these undercover videos depicting South Korea’s dog meat industry are important to watch:
  Part 1 of 2: https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ
  Part 2 of 2: https://vimeo.com/754160791
  Dog farm/slaughterhouses in Namyangju: https://youtu.be/Gu0ojDsbf2g
  What’s Happening in dog farm in Namyangju: https://youtu.be/N0dZjTw-gOA
  Dogs who suffered their entire lives are electric tortured and killed in cages—South Korea’s horrific dog meat industry: https://koreandogs.org/jtbc-news-electric-tortured-in-cages/

  Namyangju is one of the largest dog meat suppliers and consumption cities in South Korea. There are numerous dog farms and dog slaughterhouses in Namyangju. Korean web searches of Namyangju turn up dozens of dog meat restaurants and so-called “Health Centers” that commonly serve soup made of dog meat as phony elixirs (also known as dog soju).

  Dogs suffer their entire lives in filthy, feces-encrusted raised wire cages in dire misery only to be slaughtered in the most horrific of ways— tortured by electrocution, hammer strikes to their head, hanging, being beaten to death, having their throats slit, being burned alive with a blowtorch or thrown into a vat of boiling water while still alive. In many places in Namyangju, dogs are killed in full view of other caged dogs who tremble with terror. In addition, beloved pets are often stolen and sold to these slaughterhouses, where they meet the same horrific fate. Puppies who die of disease are tossed away like trash, often left in front of cages to rot while their mothers watch and cry out in despair.

  Mayor Christopher Chung of Palisades Park, NJ, has already shown his rejection of the dog meat trade in no uncertain terms. As reported in the Korea Times, he recently rejected a visit from exchange students from the friendship city, Incheon Ganghwa County, due to its dog meat trade. In California, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously passed a resolution supporting legislation or administrative action that would request the governments of South Korea, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Cambodia ban the sale of dog meat and enforce their animal protection laws.

  On behalf of companion animal-loving Americans and people worldwide, we ask that you follow these bold leads by not remaining silent in the face of such abhorrent cruelty. Please urge Namyangju Mayor Ju Gwang-deok to shut down all Namyangju dog farms, slaughterhouses, markets, dog meat restaurants, and truckers transporting dogs to their inevitable fates. An online petition calling for your support in ending such horrors perpetrated in Namyangju is in progress: https://chng.it/ggtZqKkG.

  Thank you for your serious consideration. We eagerly await your reply.

  Sincerely,

  [Your name, city, country]

• ☎️ Call the Fort Lee Mayor’s office: 201-592-3500
  Suggested phone message

  Hello, I’m calling to speak to someone in the Mayor’s Office to ask for their help on an important issue regarding your Sister City, Namyangju, in South Korea.

  If I could explain: Dog-meat consumption is currently being practiced in that city, even though it is illegal under South Korean Law – but the laws are not enforced. The dog and cat meat trades involve extreme and widespread animal cruelty, and the animals suffer unimaginable pain and distress. They cannot speak for themselves, so I am calling. And, I believe that your Borough would wish to be made aware of this issue, as you would not want to affiliate with a city where illegal and immoral torture is being carried out on any animal, and particularly not on ones that are loyal, trusting creatures, which look up to us humans as their guardians.
  This illegal industry is being allowed to continue by Namyangju authorities – even though there is growing opposition from pet guardians across South Korea and worldwide.

  So, I am asking you to please speak with your counterparts in Namyangju to urge them to enforce their laws, not ignore them, show compassion to their companion animals, and respect their citizens by bringing these trades to an end.

  I know South Korea has many beautiful, admirable, and noble practices and customs worth preserving, but this is not one of them.

  Thank you for your time and understanding.

• Send a Twitter message!
  .@nyjloving .@polnyj .@ggholic .@dy_future .@FortLeeToday .@MarkJSokolich Tell Sister City #Namyangju #Gyeonggido #SouthKorea that you oppose torture/consumption of #dogs #cats🐾 https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ😢https://vimeo.com/754160791😭https://chng.it/ggtZqKkG 💪https://koreandogs.org/Sister-city-Namyangju-Fort-Lee/

No matter where you live, PLEASE SHARE these actions with your friends, especially those who live in Fort Lee, New Jersey! 🙏

Video: Dogs who suffered their entire lives are electric tortured and killed in cages—South Korea’s horrific dog meat industry. jtbc News.[추적보도 훅] 철창 갇힌 채 감전사…’먹히기 위해’ 죽어가는 개들 / JTBC 뉴스룸