3rd December 2007
Hi To All
By now you are aware of the great and fantastic success the South African Animal Rights Film Festival
was, both in Cape Town and Johannesburg and what a great success our Animal Rock Concert was. We
now have an extra eight to twelve veggie people on board as well as a lot more people actively wanting to
help us.
This is what it is all about; making people aware and
with that in mind I would like once more to remind
you of the last fabulous event this year hosted by
Beauty without Cruelty in Cape Town on the 9th
December 2007.
I hope to see EVERY CAPETONIAN on this list
there! Let’s do it for the animals……
We would like you all to join us on the 9th December
at the Lanzerac in Stellenbosch from 11 am to 5 pm
for the Animal Awareness Day hosted by Beauty
without Cruelty.
Come and find out more about what all the animal
organizations in and around the Cape do and see
how you can support them in the coming year to
make the world a better place for our four legged
friends.
That won’t be all though.
I hope ALL Capetonians will join us for a day of fun
with includes trying out vegan snacks, vegetarian
cheese platters, pestos, olives, drinking lots of wine,
listening to bands such as 12th Avenue, Reburn,
Joshua Grierson and Mercurial with other music
provided by Jon Monsoon from Darkpaw
Entertainment.
Arts and crafts stalls will allow you to buy those last
minute prezzies and there will be great prizes and
give aways.
I am also happy to confirm that the following record
companies will be involved in the event providing
product for give-aways and music to play on the day:
Universal Music
Gallo Music
David Gresham Records
Wynter Worsthorne will be talking on Animal
Communication and Jacques Volschenk (motivational
speaker and illusionist from Life is Magical) will be
entertaining us as well.
Bring the whole family for a day of fun while
supporting various good causes.
If you have any queries or wish to still take a stall as
there are some available, please call Lejane on 021 –
559 7324.
Bring pamphlets, cages, fake animals with blood all
over them, just please remember – peaceful and
polite are the words.
This is an official gathering organized by an official
organization who, if we cause damage etc. will be
financially liable for that damage.
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL THERE !
It looks to be an absolutely fantastic end of the year
event and will enable us to discuss the next day’s
activities, namely the day when each and every
South African animal rights activists gets out there for
INTERNATIONAL ANIMAL RIGHTS DAY !
But that doesn’t mean that for once, we can not get
together at least 100 people with banners showing
the world the way animals suffer.
I know lots of you have already taken the day off so
that you can spend this time with us – let’s make it
the biggest statement of the year.
INTERNATIONAL ANIMAL RIGHTS DAY
Yip, its that time of the year again where we gather in
venues around South Africa to tell the world how we
feel about the need for animal rights in this country.
So far, we have the venues for Cape Town and
Durban. I will send out an alert for Joburg and
Bloemfontein the moment I have those details:
CAPE TOWN
Outside Newspaper House
St. George’s Mall
Cape Town
Noon – 14:00
Call Lejane on 021 – 559 7324 for further info
DURBAN
Outside Durban High Court,
Somtseu and Stanger Roads
Durban
Noon – 14:00
Call Anne on 083 637 1013
JOBURG
To be announced, but if you can help or wish further
details,
please mail Anne on anne@communiquepr.co.za
BLOEMFONTEIN
To be announced, but if you can help or wish further
details
Please mail Maria on mbekker@lg051.ofs.gov.za
Now, on to the day itself – get dressed up in animal
clothing, put on fake blood, wear T-shirts, rip your
clothing – use whatever means possible to get as
much attention for our cause.
For those of you who met Keith, let’s also show that
South Africans CAN DO IT FOR THE CAUSE. Let’s
prove this year that there are enough of us WHO
CARE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Please send the info out to as many people as
possible and just for once, be you from animal
welfare, animal rights, whatever your stance – BE
THERE to stand up for the VOICELESS !
Any questions, you know where I am on
021 559 7324
Everybody who reads this mail, please be there !
FUR
It is unfortunate that after weeks of emails and trying
to negotiate with the Waterfront and the fact that one
of their stores, namely Caroline Ohlsen Clothing still
sells rabbit fur, we have had absolutely no joy.
Emails go unanswered, telephone calls are not
returned, so we feel that polite reminders that fur is
not welcome on our shores, are in order.
Firstly, please contact the waterfront via their website
and list your complaints in their contact section on
www.waterfront.co.za or email
damitchell@waterfront.co.za
The only way we can make a difference is we all mail
polite but firm letters asking them for their policies on
fur and requesting firmly that any fur at any store in a
waterfront establishment be removed.
If you feel that you are getting nowhere, please do
put on those T-shirts proclaiming you loudly to be
anti-fur and on the odd occasion, when you visit the
Waterfront, please do make a pass by the store –
remember people, no aggro, just send a polite
message that we are here and we are watching.
We numbered 14, a respectable gathering,
and obtained a good 4 dozen pledges to neither buy
nor eat Foie Gras and these names will go on to the
sentience website. Their business, where applicable
will be mentioned also as a compassionate retailer.
To those who were unable to attend, we look forward
to meeting you and welcoming you with open arms
the next time around.
Seen in the picture are some of those who arrived,
Gin, Lejane and Jirk were elsewhere doing their thing
and I of course was behind the camera.
The deli outside which we gathered chose to hide
their stock and blatantly lied to a customer who asked
if they sell it - we clearly DID make an impact despite
the owner’s protestations to the contrary. I cannot
emphasise enough that quiet presence and
politeness often has more impact simply because we
don't allow ourselves to become emotional and a
target and therefore detract from the issue at hand.
Let the T-shirts do the talking – keep up the pressure.
Please do keep me posted on all that is happening.
We will of course follow up on the deli stocks and if
they continue, aim to have another gathering in
December where I hope to see 140 of you!! It may be
a thought to hold Sat 15th December free please,
from 11- 1pm in any event, as Andiamo in de
Waterkant and Giovanni's in 3 Anchor Bay also sell
FG.
Thanks!
Thank you, thank you again!
NO FOIE GRAS SA
This campaign is moving along at a rapid rate.
We have pledges from various celebrities that they
will not eat foie gras anymore; amongst them are:
Alex Jay
Robin Auld
Archbishop Tutu
Claire Johnston
Further to that, we are keeping the pressure up at
various delis and restaurants.
Toni had this to say about our little information day in
Sea Point:
Thank you to all those who arrived this morning and
helped make the morning a success - it looked like
the rain was going to turn really ugly and then the
sun came out!
Especially to Lejane for sorting out the legal matters
for this morning and taking the flak from the Ford's. I
swear I will THROW myself in front of the next bullet
coming your way, Lejane.
Toni
Not a problem, Toni, always there for you !
The spanish omelet is made with egg, so those ovovegetarian won´t have any problem to taste it.
The following is curious; there is a recipe without egg
that is nearly as old as the original.
This recipe is made with a little of milk, but I always
have used rice milk (If there is no problem to
mention, Rice Dream Original), so we can consider it
vegan with little changes.
As you are for us with great new ideas for us to eat
as seen in the attached.
Please place your order everyone – I am already in
for lots of chik slices and frikelattes for Christmas so
you’d better place your orders before I eat them all
up !
The result is yummy: my father is omni and nearly
didn’t see the difference when he tasted it.
 1 Kg potatoes
 150g green peppers
 150g onion
 rice milk
 olive oil
 salt

Peel and cut the potatoes and cook them until they´re
soft enough. By the time, fry the peppers and the
onion cut in half centimeter squares (aprox).
When the potatoes are cooked, smash them, mix
with the peppers and the onion and pour rice milk just
to make a dense mass. Pour a tablespoon of oil on a
frying pan and when it´s hot put the mass on it and
give omelet form to it.
After a minute or two, turn it with a dish, pour another
tablespoon of oil on the frying pan and fry the other
side of the omelet.
Serve it hot.
I’m having this for supper tonight – thanks Toni, it
looks fantastic !
Further to the above, and for our newbie veggie
people, here are some more recipes:
And just in time for Christmas and end of year
festivities, this wonderful recipe in from Tammy at
Fry’s:
Vegan Spanish Omelet
FRY'S VEGAN GLAZED XMAS HAM
from: Aitzol Ezeiza - San Sebastian, Spain
This is undoubtely the most recognized spanish
recipe all around the world together with the paella.
It´s not a very old recipe (the potato got in Spain in
the second half of the sixteenth century) but the
potato has been very important in the daily life since
it arrived from America.
Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6
2 Fry's Polonys
1 small tin Pineapple pieces
Juice from pineapple pieces
2 tbsp Brown sugar
1 tsp Mustard
A few cherries
Toothpicks & Skewers
Score 3 or 4 deep lines across the Fry's Special
Polony, skewer the 2 Polonys together and decorate
with pineapple pieces and cherries.
Mix the brown sugar, mustard and pineapple juice to
a thick paste and pour over decorated Polony. You
can add cloves to Polony (if you enjoy cloves)
Place in preheated oven at 200C° for approx 20
mins, until sauce turns dark brown. Absolutely
delicious served hot or cold.
Tammy, looks absolutely delicious – I know what I
am taking with to the family feast on Christmas Eve.
Bet you after seeing this they won’t be wanting all
that horrible meaty stuff anymore !
BAN CANNED HUNTING CAMPAIGN
Unfortunately in PETA’s latest Animal Times, they
jumped the gun a bit in asking all of their members to
write letters thanking the Minister for banning canned
hunting.
When I saw this, I immediately called Chris for his
comments:
We were surprised to hear that in the latest PETA
newsletter, under the Purr’s and Grrr’s section, PETA
members are being asked to write letters of thanks to
the S.A. Minister of the Environment because it is
believed that he has banned canned hunting in S.A.
There is no truth in this rumour.
It is perfectly true that the Minister, acting to protect
the hunting industry, has publicly announced that his
new regulations will ban canned hunting.
Unfortunately the Minister’s public statements were
misleading, and the uncritical reporting by the media
of his statements was mischievous.
In fact the new regulations not only fail to ban canned
hunting - they in fact legalise it. When one analyses
these regulations, one sees that for every apparent
restriction there is a loophole carefully drafted in to
enable the hunters to circumvent the restriction.
And one last great recipe – guilt free brownies:
CHOCOLATE BROWNIES – guilt free
In a blender, place
1 drained tin butter beans
1 cup pie apple
1 Tbs essence (caramel is good)
1 cup flour
Salt
½ cup cocoa powder
2 egg replacers
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup soy or rice milk
2 tsp baking powder
Whizz until smooth. Pour into prepared baking tin
and top with 16 chopped pecan halves. Bake about
50 minutes @ 180.
Low GI, Low Glycaemic load, low fat, and if you use
Spoon for Spoon, sugar free too.
There you go – some real goodies for us veggies to
go into the season with !
For example, the Minister announced a ban on the
popular practice of setting a pack of dogs on to a
tame captive lion/lioness so that while he/she are
fending off the dogs, the bow hunters can approach
closely to shoot their arrows into the helpless animal.
However, hunting industry lobbyists have caused an
exception to be written into the legislation allowing
dogs to be used ‘to follow up any wounded animal’.
Since hunting takes place on private land, unsupervised by any authorities, and it is quite
impossible to tell from a carcass whether the wounds
were inflicted before or after the dogs were set upon
the poor animal, it is business as usual for the dogpack hunters. See for an insight into hunting
practices www.africancats-hounds.co.za
Further the new regulations specifically approve other
shocking practices, such as gin-trapping elephants,
and killing leopards at night with the use of a
powerful spotlight in order to dazzle them.
And the regulations grant self-regulation to the very
same hunting industry which has shown that it is
unable to regulate its members, and which is in my
view an environmental terrorist organisation.
Imagine that - the very hunters who have so greatly
harmed the animals are now given carte blanche to
write their own rules.
1. The immediate posting of any news/articles/etc to
be posted on the site once we have submitted it to
you. No dilly-dallers or lollygaggers need apply.
Thus, the new regulations are in reality a skilfully
crafted publicity stunt, designed to deflect public
criticism of cruel hunting practices, but not to stop the
cruelty.
2. Loyalty - the last thing I want to do is see you give
up and grow tired of being involved after a couple
months and then we have to start the whole process
all over again. If you are not in this for the long run,
then you ain't in the run shuga.
A Minister who mis-states the effect of new
legislation, who protects the financial interests of the
hunters rather than the helpless animals, who allows
ruthless soldiers of fortune to turn wildlife into
alternative livestock to the detriment of conservation,
and who delivers our wildlife heritage into the hands
of environmental terrorists, does not deserve PETA’s
plaudits.
There is much more and concerned animal welfarists
should look to the expose of the new regulations on
our website www.cannedlion.co.za/nregulations.htm
Chris Mercer
Campaign against Canned Hunting
www.cannedlion.co.za
PO Box 356 Wilderness
6560 South Africa
Thank you so much Chris, for clearing that up for us.
3. Someone who knows how to do web updates.
4. Someone who is not going to sit and argue with
me over when and where and why and how.
If you think you are up to it or know someone who fit
the requirements, drop me a mail.
There you go – if you feel you can help, give Nikki a
shout.
FIREWORKS
Although I have, for the last couple of years, received
endless emails that seem to go nowhere around
fireworks and the banning thereof, when we decide to
put an official petition up on the petition website, with
a promise to ensure it gets handed over to the
correct government ministry, I see that after a month,
I have only 480 something signatures.
Our goal is at minimum 100 000.
Where are all the people that hate fireworks and that
have complained constantly to me over the years?
Please, get on to that site, send it out to all in South
Africa and help us once and for all, to get this
scourge banned.
SEAL ALERT
Seal Alert is looking for some help – if anybody is
able to do the following and is looking to help out an
organisation using their skills, please mail Nikki at
misterina@yahoo.com
We are looking for a volunteer webmaster for the
Seal Alert Website (http://www.sealalert.org )
No degree and genius IQ required.
Requirements:
Surely on this issue, we, whether animal welfare or
animal rightist can stand together and ensure that
this ends.
I am therefore hoping that ALL of you will send it out
to as many of your databases and put it in as many
of your newsletters as possible – if you care about
animals, fireworks must go !
Beauty without Cruelty has set up a petition on
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/ban-fireworks-insouth-africa asking our Minister of Safety and
Security to once and for all ban fireworks in South
Africa.
We are hoping to have over 100 000 signatures by
the end of June 2008 after which we will collate all of
the signatures and make an appointment to hand
them over to either him or a representative to ensure
that our request is noted by government.
Please sign and once done, please make sure it is
sent to all who are interested in ending this horror.
Cannot promise that it will change anything, but we
will ensure that it will be noted officially.
Let’s do it, people – let’s end it once and for all !
That’s it this week – I hope to see all our devoted
animal activists at the Animal Awareness Day to have
fun and the next day, at the gathering to show the
world that the time has come…………
ANIMAL RIGHTS
THE TIME HAS COME…….