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Esbjerg Mayor Jesper Frost Rasmussen: Tell your Friendship City, Jeollanam Province, South Korea, that you are 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.

Jeollanam-do Governor Kim Yung-Rok

Jeollanam Province became Friendship City with Esbjerg, Denmark, in 2021.

In Jeollanam province, there are countless dog farms, slaughterhouses, markets, and restaurants where the dogs, who are 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.

South Korea’s typical dog farm.

A Search Engine reveals the sickening scale of Jeollanam Province’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 hundreds of Health Centers and dog meat restaurants in Jeollanam Province.

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 Jeollanam Province to supply these outlets.

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

“Meat dogs” in wire cages feed on rotten food waste slops while they wait to be slaughtered.

Call for Action

• 📧 Send emails to the Esbjerg mayor and the city council members:

  [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [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 the CC (Carbon Copy) email to the Jeollanam Provincial Council and the South Korean National Assembly members:

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

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

  Borgmester Jesper Frost Rasmussen
  Esbjerg Rådhus
  Torvegade 74
  6700 Esbjerg
  Denmark

  📬 Send a copy of your letter to Jeollanam Province Governor:
  Governor Kim Yung-Rok
  Jeollanam Province
  1 Oryong-gil, Samhyang-eup, Muan-gun, Jeollanam-do
  Postal Code 58564
  South Korea

  📬 Jeollanam Province Governor’s address in Korean:
  김영록 도지사님
  전라남도청
  (58564) 전라남도 무안군 삼향읍 오룡길 1
  South Korea

Suggested message

Subject: Esbjerg Mayor Jesper Frost Rasmussen: Tell your Friendship City, Jeollanam Province, South Korea, that you are opposed to the torture and consumption of dogs and cats.

Dear Mayor Rasmussen and the Esbjerg City Council members:

We ask you to please watch the videos from South Korea’s dog meat industry:
Shocking Cruelty of South Korean Dog Meat Industry, Part 1 of 2: https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ
Part 2 of 2: https://vimeo.com/754160791
Urgent Action Alert! Forest fire in Uljin burns dogs imprisoned in dog meat farms: https://koreandogs.org/uljin-fire/

Do you think Esbjerg should be a Friendship city to any city that allows dogs and cats to be tortured and eaten by people?

Jeollanam Province is one of the largest dog meat suppliers and consumption provinces in South Korea. There are hundreds of dog farms, dog slaughterhouses, dog meat restaurants, and so-called “Health Centers” where they serve soup made of dog meat as an elixir. Dogs suffer their entire lives in filthy, feces encrusted raised wire cages in utter misery only to be slaughtered in the most horrific ways. They are killed by electrocution, hammer strikes to their head and necks, being hung, 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 Jeollanam Province, dogs are killed in full view of other terrified, caged dogs who tremble with terror. In addition, people’s beloved pets are often stolen and sold to these businesses, where they meet the same horrific fate. Dogs and puppies who died of diseases are tossed away like garbage, often left in front of cages to rot while the mother dogs watch and cry out in despair for their dead babies.

The Korean internet searches resulted in hundreds of Health Centers which commonly sell dog/cat elixirs (also known as dog soju and cat soju) and dog meat restaurants in Jeollanam Province.

Would you please urge Jeollanam Province Governor Kim Yung-Rok 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 dog and cat meat cruelty in Jeollanam Province is in progress: https://chng.it/qWzgVrbC.

On behalf of all the animals suffering unimaginable cruelty in the dog and cat meat industry, we thank you in advance and await your reply.

Sincerely,

Suggested message in Danish

Subject: Borgmester Jesper Frost Rasmussen, Esbjerg: Fortæl din venskabsby, Jeollanam i Sydkorea, at du er imod mishandling og spisning af hunde og katte.

Kære borgmester Jesper Frost Rasmussen og medlemmer af Esbjerg byråd:

Jeg beder dig venligst om at se disse videoer fra Sydkoreas hundekødsindustri:
Shocking Cruelty of South Korean Dog Meat Industry, del 1 af 2: https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ
Del 2 af 2: https://vimeo.com/754160791
Urgent Action Alert! Forest fire in Uljin burns dogs imprisoned in dog meat farms: https://koreandogs.org/uljin-fire/

Mener du, at Esbjerg skal være venskabsby med et sted, der tillader at hunde og katte bliver mishandlet og spist af mennesker?

Jeollanam er en af de største provinser i forhold til handel med og indtagelse af hundekød i Sydkorea. Der er hundredvis af hundefarme, hundeslagterier, hundekødsrestauranter og såkaldte “helsecentre”, hvor der serveres hundekødssuppe som værende eliksir. Hundene lider hele deres liv i beskidte og afføringsbesatte hævede trådbure i ren og skær elendighed for til sidst at blive slagtet på de mest grusomme måder. De bliver slået ihjel med strøm, med hammer i hoved og nakke, bliver hængt, tævet til døde, får halsen skåret over, bliver brændt levende med flammekastere eller smidt i kar og kogt levende. Mange steder i Jeollanam bliver hundene slået ihjel for øjnene af andre skrækslagne, indeburede hunde, som skælver af rædsel. For at gøre ondt værre, bliver folks elskede kæledyr ofte stjålet og solgt til disse virksomheder, hvor de møder samme grusomme skæbne. Voksne hunde og hvalpe, som er døde af sygdom, bliver smidt væk som affald, og bliver ofte efterladt til at rådne væk foran burene, mens deres hundemødre ser på og hyler i fortvivlelse efter deres elskede afdøde kammerater og hvalpe.

Koreanske internetsøgninger giver hundredvis af resultater på helsecentre, som almindeligvis sælger hunde-/katteeliksirer (også kendt som hunde- og kattesoju), og hundekødsrestauranter i Jeollanamprovinsen.

Vil du være så god og venlig at opfordre Jeollanamprovinsens guvernør Kim Yung-Rok til at nedlægge alle ulovlige hundefarme og -slagterier, markeder, salgsvogne og restauranter, der forhandler disse produkter? En underskriftindsamling, der beder om din støtte til at sætte en stopper for den frygtelige hunde- og kattekødsindustri i Jeollanamprovinsen, er i gang på nettet lige nu: https://chng.it/qWzgVrbC.

På vegne af alle de dyr, der er ofre for den mest utænkelige ondskab i hunde- og kattekødsindustrien, takker jeg dig på forhånd, og ser frem til at høre fra dig.

Venlig hilsen,

• ☎️ Call the Esbjerg Mayor’s office: +011 45 76 16 10 00 (from the United States)
  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 Friendship City, Jeollanam Province in South Korea.

  If I could explain: Dog-meat consumption is currently being practiced in that province, 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 affiliate with a province 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 Jeollanam Province authorities – even though there is growing opposition from pet owners across South Korea and worldwide.

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

  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!
  .@greenjeonnam .@camp8866 Esbjerg Mayor Jesper Frost Rasmussen: Tell your Friendship City, Jeollanam Province, South Korea, that you are opposed to the torture and consumption of #dogs #cats 🐾 https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ😢https://vimeo.com/754160791 😭 https://koreandogs.org/Friendship-City-Jeollanam-Esbjerg/ 📣 https://chng.it/qWzgVrbC

No matter where you live, PLEASE SHARE these actions with your friends, especially those who live in Esbjerg! 🙏