Actually, the Indonesians have not been slaughtering Australian cattle.

They've been slaughtering their own cattle. Once they have been paid for they are no longer "ours" and the owners are free to do whatever they want to with their own property.

If people are suddenly horrified by a practice that's been going on under their noses for many years, they should consider their support for the live export practice itself and not on imposing token restrictions.

It's a bit like our opposition to the death penalty for convicted Australian drug couriers in those countries yet supporting the execution of their own home-grown terrorists.

Thanks Banjo, Yabby, and Belly,

You guys know more about this situation than I do.
I'm going to be watching to see what happens next.
I've got to say Bob Katter impressed me on Q and A
the other night. A bit of a character - no doubt -
but what he said made sense.

My brother, a meat eater his whole life told me last week that he and his wife had become vegetarians after seeing what was happening to our cattle in Indonesia. I know of two others in the extended family who have given it serious consideration. Given I spent four hours cutting prime meat off a fresh carcass just the other week I'm probably not as ready to jump as they are but I will admit it pulled me up in my tracks. I personally had spent six months off pork until my local butcher had assured us he sourced his from a free range farm. He even smokes his own and it is a top notch product.

Whatever one may think of their stance, I personally applaud it, they are consumers and their choices matter. It is no good trying to divorce the Australian industry from what is happening in Indonesia because my brother's decision is about not wanting to support an industry that permits their animals to be treated in such a manner.

I think the Gillard government's action in suspending live exports will have a major impact in retaining consumers who are ready to quit or dramatically lessen their meat consumption. Given the vast amount of advertising done by the meat industry to promote their product one would have thought they would have been prepared to put the interests of the local sector over the small percentage that make up live exports.

*my brother's decision is about not wanting to support an industry that permits their animals to be treated in such a manner*

Csteele, luckily 1000 million Chinese have a rising income and
they like meat, so perhaps the industry might just survive
without your brother :)

There is no "industry" as such, just many sections of it, with
a pseudo Govt dept sitting on top. That pseudo Govt dept seems
to have gotten some things wrong, only the minister has the
power to get them to fix that.

It is just sad that the ABC did not show a documentary style
programme about the Indonesian situation, rather then act as
a promoter of AA dogma. I could make a sensationalist style
programme about domestic violence, gruesome enough that
some would call for banning marriage! As viewers we should
see both sides of the story, not have our tv hijacked for peoples
agendas.

AA and the RSPCA sat on this footage for months and refused to
even show it to Ludwig. Then they screamed loud, when he did not
shut the industry within a week after their movie went to air.
So it was all part of a neat campaign.

If AA and the RSPCA were really concerned about animal welfare
in the third world, they would get involved in designing some
decent equipment for it and promote the spending of a few
dollars of our huge foreign aid programme, to get it into some
of these works. But of course vegans don't want to be associated
with anything to do with slaughter, they dislike meat eaters in
the first place, so Egyptian animals in Egyptian meatworks
continue to suffer, whilst Australian animals get it easy.
Why do they only care about Australian animals?

Plenty of vegans have stated on the various agricultural forums,
that they think that farmers should find another job and give
up livestock farming.

Dear Yabby,

I don't think my brother had any thought of shutting the industry down, all he did, as was his right in a democratic capitalist society, was to withdraw his custom. Some call it voting with his wallet though to me it was just taking a personal, ethical stand.

I'm not as against a properly conducted and well supervised live cattle export trade as others but anyone who thought a strong ownership of this issue by the government was not warranted is being short sighted. I would expect them however to be expending every effort to get a humane and sustainable system in place as quickly as possible.

I think any anger should be directed at the Association who was getting paid to supervise the live cattle trade. However I would not have wanted or expected anything less from the government on this issue. Unwarranted delays may well change my mind.

Perhaps an alternative title for this thread might have been 'The influence of abattoir practices in Indonesia on Australian consumers' because any good business sector shouldn't be ignoring it.

yabby! betcha the chances of csteels brother ever eating Indonesian cattle is very low.
In that other thread, clearly some doubts about the people being who they claim, reasons may not, given past actions for some, have been stopping the trade in favor of a dream Halal can make them rich.
Above all,this country must make up its mind ,is the tail to wag our dog.
Are the views of most of us fodder for the very lost but far from voiceless left?
Both party's must grow back bones and find new leaders and ones who can get the country out of the hands of greens.
Gillard please leave!