The dog meat trade may have been banned in Bali since 2017, but officials yesterday said they found evidence that some vendors are still selling “RW,” as the illegal meat is referred to on the island.
Bali’s Animal Health Agency reportedly conducted an inspection and monitoring operation between April and May 2019 in which they visited food stalls that used to sell dog meat.
“We wanted to see if the old stalls might be stubborn about the regulation. Upon inspection, some of them still sold (RW),” Ni Made Sukerni from the Agency told Tribun-Bali.
According to the report, a total of 77 RW food stalls have been closed since 2018 across the island, including in Badung, Denpasar and Buleleng, though some remained open and simply stopped offering dog meat as a part of their menu.
Sukerni emphasized that the dog meat trade is strictly prohibited in Bali, and highlighted the risk it poses for the spread of rabies.
According to Animals Australia, who sponsored a summit in 2017 that issued key recommendations on how Bali’s provincial government should approach the dog trade, eating dog meat is not a traditional practice of the Balinese.
“It was fueled by a small group who came to the island in the 1970’s to work in the hospitality industry. For thousands of years, Bali’s dogs have lived peacefully in villages with locals,” Lyn White of Animals Australia said then.
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