When a leading academic is forced to abandon an address about responsible management of wildlife and supply chains because of death threats and outlandish protests it is clear Australia has sunk to new lows.
It happened last week when respected academic, Dr Ben Allen’s (pictured left) address to the international forum Conservation Through Sustainable Use of Wildlife in Brisbane was forced off the agenda because of internet campaigns against him.
That the debate be stymied by simple protest channeled into the physical by Facebook rants unconnected with what Dr Ben Allen’s address was actually about is a new low point for us all.
As quoted in The Land’s August 25 edition, Dr Allen said: “The talk I’m giving is not so much about wild dogs as it is about how you get sustainable use to work properly.”
His talk was about creation of a supply chain and how to get it to work in relation to native species but: “Everyone forgets the process and wants to talk about dog meat.”
Really the spin was “we have a kangaroo industry, how can we make it work better? How can we use crocodiles better, how can we get the camel meat market going?”
It was about a six-step process of reliable supply chain creation.
Nothing to do with dogs at all really, just a hypothetical example of an untouched market and how anyone would need to go about creating a market.
Even Dr Allen told The Land: “If anyone wanted to do it they’re going to face a mountain of challenges, not the least of which is social opposition.” One of the key precepts of the Brisbane forum was how to use profits from wildlife to help better protect it.
Controversial? It would seem so.
But that it brought to the fore extreme animal activists who attacked Dr Allen’s paper as a single-issue topic and that those activists threatened to kill fellow human beings to get their point across makes it obvious the entire concept of debate is lost on them.
It is if and when these extremists begin forcing change via knee-jerk reactions from our politicians that Australia tips into the realm of third-world decision making.
It is then fear-mongering has won the day over balanced, sensible debate and, indeed, democracy. It is time some maturity was bought to the matter of animal welfare – and democracy and science are given their due respect in our country.
