Qingping
Market-Guangzhou
1984-1991
WARNING:
Photos near the bottom
of
this page are extremely graphic.
All of the photos on this page were taken
at the Qingping Market in 1984 and 1991.
As you can see, the practice of taking
animals from the wild is not a "new" issue.
Looking at these photos, it would seem
like they were taken yesterday.
These animals cannot withstand the continued
mass collection for decades
and expect to survive in the wild.
These photos are a perfect but unfortunate example
of how an animal becomes endangered.
Even back in the 1980's, turtles were
being collected en masse for the Qingping food
market, where thousands of turtles were
(and still are) sold.
The following photographs were taken by
Richard Sobol. Permission has been granted to
TortoiseAid International for their use
on this web page by Jill Robinson of the Animals Asia
Foundation. We thank Animals Asia
for their efforts to assist us in educating you, and for
defending animals in distress throughout
Asia.
There just aren't words to
accurately describe these photographs.
All are graphic and stir many strong emotions
within us. We feel that to give the world a realistic
view of the Asian Turtle Crisis, the huge
numbers of animals killed for their body parts, and the
cruelty involved for these animals, accurate
documentation is necessary.
Note from the author of this
page
I have witnessed the deaths of hundreds of "market"
turtles, most of which were slaughtered
using this same method. For me, the most disturbing
thoughts are...that these sentient, beautiful
animals are absolutely and completely defenseless.
In addition, turtles have no vocal cords.
As a repeated witness to this mutilation, I know that their excruciating suffering... is silent.
They cannot even cry out in pain. They're so very alone, and they're terrified.
I wonder how long it will be until there are none left for our children to enjoy in a wild setting. It is the responsibility of THIS generation to ensure the continued survival in the wild of ALL species.
We only hold this planet and it's beautiful inhabitants in trust for our children, these animals are not ours to take.
