Take one steel water pipe or tow bar and bludgeon
‘with force sufficient to crush the skull and destroy the brain .’ [1]

Australia’s attention may currently be focused on the killing of whales and dolphins by the Japanese or the slaughter of seals in Canada but the largest massacre of land based animals on the planet is taking place in our own backyard.

More than 3 million kangaroos and wallabies are slaughtered for commercial purposes annually in Australia, in what constitutes a Federal Government sanctioned killing frenzy that often inflicts unspeakable cruelty on our national icon. For adult kangaroos and wallabies the recommended method of killing is by a shot to the head while joeys should be ‘disposed’ of by decapitation or bludgeoning with steel pipes and tow bars.

The Federal Government is calling for public comment by March 6th on the Draft National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos and Wallabies, which seeks to regulate the kangaroo and wallaby killing industry.  The public submission process is, however, little more than a blatant attempt by the Government to establish its welfare credentials by suggesting that animal welfare groups are satisfied with the revised Code. While animal welfare groups may be part of the working party, none have endorsed the contents of the Code.

The Draft National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos and Wallabies is a weak and ineffective instrument which lacks legal clout. The Code not only allows for the barbaric killing of joeys but also many other cruel practices inflicted upon adult kangaroos by both commercial and non-commercial shooters in an industry that, by its very nature, is difficult to police.

Brian Sherman AM, director of Voiceless said today, “The Code is largely a product of the former Government’s animal welfare policy of allowing commercial and non-commercial shooters to inflict untold suffering on Australia’s national icon. If Australians treated their companion animals in the manner contemplated by this document they would be prosecuted for animal cruelty. It is a national shame and disgrace”.

Voiceless calls on the newly elected Federal Government to bring an end to the barbaric slaughter of kangaroos and wallabies once and for all. A national debate, with the full participation of leading animal protection groups, on the culling of kangaroos and their joeys is long overdue.  

“Animal protection is one of the last great social justice movements. The Rudd Government should seize the opportunity to be at the vanguard of this movement by offering meaningful protections to kangaroos and wallabies rather than sanctioning their massacre.” Brian Sherman also said earlier today.

The Voiceless submission on the Draft National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos and Wallabies is available on the submissions pages of our website.

1.   Australian Government Department of the Environment, Heritage, Water & The Arts, Draft National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos and Wallabies,Third Edition, 10 September 2007, clause 6.1.