Victory! Philippines’ Top Entertainment Show Bans the Use of Live Animals
The Philippines’ most popular entertainment show, Eat Bulaga!—which airs on the country’s top TV network, GMA7—has implemented a policy never to use animals again. The decision comes after eels and frogs were used in the “Bulagaan Olympics” portion of the show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsGAonewkqo?t=11m54s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzFxVuPXKDE?t=7m19s
A concerned citizen called PETA when he saw that animals were being carelessly thrown and mishandled by show contestants. We immediately wrote to the production company, pointing out that the cruelty blatantly violated the Animal Welfare Act RA 8485, as amended by RA 10631, which states, “It shall be unlawful for any person to torture any animal, to neglect to provide adequate care, subject any dog or horse to dogfights or horsefights, kill or cause or procure to be tortured or deprived of adequate care, sustenance or shelter, or maltreat or use the same in research or experiments not expressly authorized by the Committee on Animal Welfare.”
Animals who are exploited in the film and television industries are subjected to stress caused by bright lights, loud noises, and forced contact with humans. They spend much of their lives confined, they’re hauled from one production to another, and they often endure horrific conditions off the set.
What You Can Do
Animals deserve better than to be treated as if they were props for our amusement. Here’s how you can help to stop the abuse:
- If you see a film, television show, or advertisement that exploits animals, contact the producers and tell them that you object. Let them know that animals suffer both on and off camera when they’re used for entertainment.
- If your school still exploits an animal as its mascot, start a campaign to switch to a costumed human mascot.
- If your church still uses live animals in nativity scenes, appeal to your congregation to take an ethical stand against the practice.
