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India's sacred cows under threat
From Suhasini Haidar
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- On the streets of New Delhi, cows are a common sight. India is home to a quarter of the world's cow population, with two hundred million head of cattle. One major reason is that India's majority Hindu community worship cows. In October this year, five men were beaten to death in the north Indian state of Haryana by an angry mob on suspicion of killing a cow for its skin. In most Indian states it is illegal to kill any cattle. Many politicians now want the government to do more to protect them. "Cow in this country is like a mother," says Gumman Mal Iodha of the National Commission on Cattle. Iodha says the cow should be made India's national animal, instead of the tiger, and wants the government to create a cow protection security force to ensure they aren't slaughtered for their beef or leather. The government, led by the Hindu Nationalist BJP, says it would like to ban cow slaughter in all of India. But many say making cow slaughter illegal just moves the industry underground, which will result in more cruelty to the animal. ProtestsThe international animal rights group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has videos showing what they claim is cattle being transported and killed brutally in illegal slaughterhouses, a practice the group actively protests. Last year PETA's campaign resulted in many retailers like Gap, Donna Karan, Eddie Bauer and Timberland no longer buying Indian leather. India's leather business -- a $4 billion industry -- took a big hit, with exports dropping almost fifty percent. "A lot of companies, they have stopped doing business with us over the period of years which have hurt us tremendously," comments leather exporter, Vicki Shaw. Some say banning leather, an industry that employs two and half million Indians, isn't the answer. Exporter Sunil Lalra gave up the business this year, because his buyers cancelled orders. "We all agree that animals are being badly treated -- but what are they doing about it. Banning the industry is going to kill an industry that employs thousands and thousands of people in India," he warns. The challenge for the government is to balance the rights of the animal, sacred to many in India, and the rights of an industry whose future is now being threatened.
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