A Pakistani provincial assembly "in its (in)finite wisdom" has declared that an ostrich is not a bird but an animal, said a leading daily.
Ostrich was declared “an animal” on Wednesday when Punjab Assembly passed a bill overruling the objections raised by the Punjab governor who had refused to sign it, saying, it was a bird covered under the definition of exotic species not native to Pakistan.
It’s a bird, no it’s an animal: Punjab legislators in Pakistan have declared that ostrich is an animal. Pic/Getty Images.
ADVERTISEMENT
“‘Animal’ means a bull, bullock, buffalo, buffalo-bull, camel, cow, goat, ostrich, sheep or any other animal of any age domesticated in captivity”, says Section 2 (a) of Punjab Animals Slaughter Control (Amendment) Bill 2012 passed by the Assembly for the second time, ignoring reservations expressed by the Opposition and the governor.u00a0An editorial in the Dawn Friday asked: “When is an ostrich not a bird?”
“Apparently, when you add Pakistani legislators into the mix. On Wednesday, in its (in)finite wisdom, the Punjab Assembly once again declared by a majority vote that an ostrich was not a bird but an animal, at least for the purposes of officialdom.”
It came up because of the re-tabling of the Punjab Animal Slaughter Control (Amendment) Bill 2012.u00a0The daily said that the Punjab government’s aim seems to be to facilitateu00a0the import, farming and slaughter of ostriches for their meat.
“As a non-native exotic bird, ostriches were treated under the law — until the latest amendment was passed — in a way that limited their use for commercial purposes. Of course, rather than update the laws that would allow ostrich farming to be regulated and ostrich meat to be consumed, the Punjab Assembly saw fit to declare ostriches as animals and skip the more cumbersome approach,” it said.
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
