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County Executive James Tedesco III of Bergen County: Tell Sister City, Hapcheon-gun, 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.

Hapcheon-gun became Sister city with Bergen County in 2004.
In Hapcheon-gun, 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 broad daylight. In addition, many abandoned and stolen former pets end up in this industry and are subject to the same cruelty.

A Search Engine reveals the sickening scale of Hapcheon-gun’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 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 64 Health Food Shops and 14 restaurants in the vicinity of Hapcheon-gun.

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 Hapcheon-gun to supply these outlets.

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

https://koreandogs.org/meat-dogs-in-wire-cages-feed-on-rotten-food-waste-slops/

Please sign petition, call, write and email the Bergen County Executive TODAY!

• Send Email:
  [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
• Send letter (Use the below-suggested message or petition):Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III
  One Bergen County Plaza
  Floor 5, Room 580
  Hackensack, NJ 07601
  USA

  Send a copy of your letter to Hapcheon-gun Mayor Chang-Hwan Ha:
  Mayor Chang-Hwan Ha
  Hapcheon-gun Office
  119 Dongseo-ro, Hapcheon-eup, Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
  Postal Code 50231
  South Korea

  Address in Korean:
  하창환 합천군수님
  합천군청
  (50231) 경남 합천군 합천읍 동서로 119
  South Korea

• Send a message through Facebook page:
  Bergen County
  Hapcheon-gun

  Suggested email/letter/Facebook message

  Dear County Executive Tedesco III and the County Council members,

  We ask you to please watch the videos of South Korea’s dog meat industry: https://youtu.be/_ZVQjgGb4RQ
  https://koreandogs.org/horrible-reality-of-meat-dog-farms-you-did-not-know/
  https://koreandogs.org/dmp/
  https://koreandogs.org/companion-animals-for-consumption/.

  Do you think that Bergen County should be a Sister city to any city that allows dogs and cats to be tortured and eaten? Please urge Hapcheon-gun Mayor Chang-Hwan Ha to close down all those illegal dog farms and slaughterhouses, markets, truckers, and restaurants that serve these animal 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/county-executive-james-tedesco-iii-of-bergen-county-tell-sister-city-hapcheon-korea-that-we-re-opposed-to-the-torture-consumption-of-dogs
  The favor of your reply is requested.
  Thank you,

  [Your Name & City/Country]

• Call the Mayor’s Office: 865-215-2040

  Suggested phone message

  Hello, I’m calling to speak to someone in the County Executive’s Office to ask for their help on an important issue regarding your sister city, Hapcheon-gun in South Korea.

  If I could explain: dog-meat consumption is currently being practiced in that county, 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 county would wish to be made aware of this issue, as they would not want to be affiliated with a county 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 Hapcheon-gun 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!

  Suggested Twitter text

  .@TravelHapcheon .@gyeongnamdo .@bergencountynj Exe.Tedesco Plz Urge Sister City, Hapcheon, S Korea-Stop eating dogs https://goo.gl/XEqT3V

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