JOIN US: Ose (seated second right) and Wee show the WAG 2013 poster after the press conference on the ‘Animal and The City’ International Symposium.
KUCHING: The Sarawak Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) is expecting additional interest in the ‘Animals and The City’ International Symposium, setting their sights at 60-100 delegates for the Oct 11 conference.
The symposium organised as part of the World Animal Groove festivities, aims to gather experts and practitioners to discuss urban animal strategies to build and sustain healthy urban communities for people, pets, stray animals and wildlife.
SSPCA president Dona Drury-Wee said that so far there are 40 delegates confirmed for the one-day conference.
“We feel it’s a very good conference which will appeal to the local councils as well as anyone who is interested to see the greater picture of how animal welfare is dealt with here, how it’s done overseas, and how we can better improve the methods we are using here.”
The symposium will be followed by the charity gala dinner, held to raise funds for the new Animal Village.
“We hope to be able to move in a couple of years once the state government has identified the plot of land,” Wee added.
She was speaking at a press conference at Wisma Bapa Malaysia after a meeting with Deputy State Secretary Datu Ose Murang and representatives from the local councils.
Ose said that the symposium aims to create greater awareness among the city’s citizens and people coming into contact with animals such as stray dogs and cats.
The symposium features a stellar line-up of international speakers from Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Canada, United Kingdom and Indonesia, as well as speakers from Sarawak, Sabah and West Malaysia.
SPCA Hong Kong executive director Sandy Maclister will be speaking about their Cat Trap, Neuter and Release programme, arguably the best in the world today. In the past six years, they had successfully neutered an average of 6,000 cats a year through partnerships between government and civil society.
Dr Wiwiek Bagja, Indonesian Veterinary Medical Association president and advisor on animal welfare to the President of Indonesia, will speak about the Indonesian government’s experience in integrating animal welfare into urban planning and management.
Dr Dananjaya Karunaratna from World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), Thailand, will present the International Companion Animal Management (ICAM) Coalition’s Humane Dog Population Management Guidelines, which provides ways to assess strategies for dog population management and to decide on the most effective and resource-efficient approaches to manage dog populations in a humane manner.
His colleague Nguyen Thu Tra of WSPA Vietnam will talk about the First Concepts in Animal Welfare programme, developed by WSPA and the University of Bristol’s School of Veterinary Science.
Its syllabus includes modules on companion animals and wild animals, covering aspects such as population control strategies, neutering programmes, controlling the pet trade, and humane methods for reducing animal populations.
Anthony Sebastian from Malaysian Nature Society will speak about managing wildlife in urban centres in Malaysia, while Oswald Braken Tisen of Sarawak Forestry Corporation will speak specifically about managing human-wildlife conflicts in urban areas and the role of urban nature reserves in mitigating conflicts.
Dr Chris R Shepherd, Traffic-Southeast Asia regional director, will talk provide an insight into the wildlife trade in Sarawak.
Strategies for animal welfare can only be successfully implemented if the laws are in place to enable this, and if there is active support and participation from all sectors of society.
Dr Adrian Susin Ambud from Sarawak Veterinary Services Department will present a summary of the state’s animal welfare law, while Dr Mohd Azlan Jayasilan (Unimas) will speak on wildlife conservation laws in Sarawak.
Dave Avran (WAGazine) will suggest ways to communicate the animal welfare message, while Nicole Helwig (Lariche Community) will talk about strategies to enhance corporate-community partnerships.
SSPCA is calling on all agencies and individuals working on or interested in animal welfare and management to register for the symposium.
Symposium fee per participant is RM120 (for Malaysians and non-Malaysians residing in Sarawak), RM180 for (International), and RM80 (full-time student).
In addition to conference materials and refreshments, each participant will receive one free ticket to WAG Music Festival on Oct 12.
Both events will be held at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK).
For more information on the symposium and to register, call Rebecca D’Cruz at 019-8579110 or [email protected], or Brenda Png at 019-8863118 or [email protected].
The symposium is part of a series of events held on Oct 11 and 12 under the WAG Festival 2013 to commemorate World Animal Day.
For more information on WAG 2013 and its line-up of events, visit www.wagmusicfestival.com.