ENTERTAINMENT or exploitation for profit . . .?
The arrival of the well-known McLaren Circus in Jeffreys Bay after a two-year absence has animal rights group up in arms.
A group of outraged placard-bearing activists and animal-lovers held a peaceful protest outside McLaren Circus in St Francis Street, Jeffreys Bay last week – protesting the use of wild animals for human entertainment and profit.
The protesters – under the banner of Ban Animal Circuses SA – were holding up placards reading “We will not be silenced”, “Animals deserve to be free” and “Prisoners for profit” in the hope of “planting a seed of enlightenment”, as well as to encourage the public to refrain from supporting “entertainment that exploits animals for pleasure”.
McLaren Circus, a traditional circus, presents a show that combines human and animal acts. Animals used include lions, tigers, poodles, horses, ponies, pythons, alligators and miniature goats.
Well-known local animal activist Suzanne Kruger, who wants to give animals confined to circus life a voice, says, “The protest is not against McLaren Circus specifically, but is aimed at raising awareness about wild animals being kept in an unnatural environment. It takes away their right to be free.
“Keeping animals in captivity is a cruel practice and circuses that use animals for entertainment, offer no conservation or educational value to their audience.”
She says the main concern is not specifically how the animals are being kept, but the trauma they might face living in captivity, as well as “being trained and forced to travel around the country”.
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