[Campaign Closed] Friendship City Campaign – Goyang, South Korea – Virginia Beach, Virginia
[Update February 6, 2017] Virginia Beach, Virginia responds it is NOT a Friendship City to Goyang, South Korea.
We have received a response on February 3, 2016, regarding our Campaign. Councilman Jim Wood with Virginia Beach has informed us that Virginia Beach does not have a Friendship City connection with Goyang. Click HERE to learn more.
Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms: Tell Friendship City Goyang, South Korea, That We’re Opposed to 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.
Goyang Mayor Seong Choi
Virginia Beach, Virginia became Friendship city to Goyang , South Korea in 2005.
Goyang is one of the largest dog meat consumption areas in South Korea. There are countless 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 public and in broad daylight. In addition, many abandoned and stolen former pets end up in this industry and are subject to the same cruelty.
Mayor Choi Sung’s goal is to “develop Goyang into a world-class city that attracts favorable international attention.” How can this be accomplished for as long as the illegal and barbaric dog and cat meat trade are rampant in his city? This cruel trade brings misery not only to its helpless and defenseless victims but to those watching from around the world. The horrendous cruelty of the dog and cat meat trade will continue to dishonor and sully the reputation of the city through international scrutiny and opinion. The Mayor also committed “to further developing Goyang into one of the most prestigious future cities that will be admired by many around the world.” The best way for the Mayor to successfully realize his goals is to end the dog and cat meat trades in Goyang.
Meat Dog Farm in Goyang City near Seoul (Source: Nami Kim. https://www.facebook.com/savekoreandogs)
A Search Engine reveals the sickening scale of Goyang’s dog meat demand.
Shown below are two search results on Naver (the most popular search engine in Korea) – the first one was for so-called “Health Food 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.”
The searches resulted in dozens of 265 Health Food Centers; and 200 restaurants in the vicinity of Goyang.
Even if half of these ‘Health’ Food Centers and restaurants serve dog and cat ‘ingredients’ in one form or another, imagine how many dog/cat slaughterhouses must be present in the vicinity of Goyang to supply these outlets.
There are laws in South Korea against selling dogs and cats for consumption, yet these laws are blatantly ignored.
Please watch the video of a typical dog farm in Goyang https://youtu.be/EVVPruGyKj8.
Also please watch the undercover video from the documentary trailer by the Korea Observer: https://youtu.be/T6KKIZEjofs
Call for Action
- No matter where you live, please SIGN OUR PETITION
- Email: (Use the below-suggested message or petition for email text)[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
- Send a letter! (Use the below-suggested message or petition for letter text):Mayor Will Sessoms
City of Virginia Beach
2401 Courthouse Dr # 234
Virginia Beach, VA 23456
USASend a copy of your letter to the Goyang Mayor Seong Choi !
Mayor Seong Choi
Goyang City Hall
10 Goyangsicheong-ro, Deogyang-du, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do
Postal Code 10460
South KoreaAddress in Korean:
최성 고양시장님
(우)10460 경기도 고양시 덕양구 고양시청로 10
South Korea📝 Suggested message
Dear Mayor Will Sessoms and the members of the City Council of Virginia Beach:
We ask you to please watch the video of a dog farm in Goyang: https://youtu.be/EVVPruGyKj8
Also please watch the undercover video from the documentary trailer by the Korea Observer: https://youtu.be/T6KKIZEjofsDo you think that Virginia Beach should be a Friendship city to any city that allows dogs and cats to be tortured and eaten? Please urge the Goyang Mayor Seong Choi to close down all illegal dog farms and slaughterhouses, markets, truckers, and restaurants that serve their products. An online petition calling for your support in ending the horrendous South Korean dog and cat meat cruelty is in progress: https://www.change.org/p/mayor-will-sessoms-of-virginia-beach-tell-friendship-city-goyang-korea-that-we-re-opposed-to-torture-consumption-of-dogs-cats
The favor of your reply is requested.
Thank you,[Your Name, City/Country]
- Call the Mayor’s Office!
Office Phone: (757) 385-4581
Fax: (757) 385-5669Suggested phone message
Hello, I’m calling to speak to someone in the Mayor’s Office to ask for the Mayor’s help on an important issue regarding your Friendship city, Goyang 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 which is why I am calling on their behalf. And, I believe that your city would wish to be made aware of this issue, as you would not want to be affiliated 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.
These illegal trades are being allowed to continue by Korean authorities – even though there is growing opposition from pet owners across South Korea, and throughout the world.
So, I am asking you to please speak with your counterparts in Goyang to urge them to enforce their own laws, not ignore them, and to show compassion to their companion animals, and also respect to their own citizens, by bringing these trades to an end.
With the Winter Olympics coming up in 2018, this is the time to make change; this is the time to stop the illegal, inhumane and unnecessary cruelty. I know that 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!
.@goyangcity .@CityofVaBeach .@VABeachMayor Plz urge Friendship City, Goyang, Korea-Stop Torture/Eating of Dogs/Cats https://goo.gl/ahpzcZ
No matter where you live, PLEASE SHARE these actions with your friends, especially those who live in Virginia Beach!
Share this:
it’s horrible, like in the Middle Ages in Europe !!! but in Europe, the people ate the dead dogs, because of the famine, and their skin was used and the blanket !! it was understaning !! but now, what happens in S. Korea overtakes the humanity limits !!! how they can do that ? to skin them alive !!! to cut the legs when the dog is still alive to serve it to the clients in the restaurants !!!! now it’s horrendous and unspeakable acts !!!