Online protest planned ahead of Durban July over horse racing

According to Carol Dillon, a member of the animal rights group, Beauty Without Cruelty, the aim of the Tweetstorm is to raise awareness about the ‘horrific realities of the horse racing industry in South Africa’.

“The protest is to make people aware of the abuse that animals endure whenever money is involved. We are hoping that people will stop seeing animals as commodities, and rather make the compassionate choice to stop funding the horse racing industry. The protest is open to anyone with a twitter account, and against animal cruelty. Beauty Without Cruelty will supply a list of tweets people can use, to make it easier, with specific hashtags. This event is supported and will be joined by the Australian group, Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses.

“Racehorses have roughly three years as a racer, although they live into their 20s. What happens after that? This is what the public doesn’t see, and often doesn’t want to know. The public only see the glitz and the glamour and the impeccably kept horses. Once they are no longer winning favourites, terrible things can happen to these wonderful creatures,” she said.

Dillon added the online protest has the potential to reach far more people than a physical protest which has happened in the past and which is impossible due to the current Covid-19 regulations.

In a response to Northglen News, Gold Circle’s Event marketing executive Steve Marshall said they recognised the right of the protesters to stage their online picket, and said that the organisation and the Vodacom Durban July as an event were continuously mindful of the standards set for the welfare of thoroughbreds used in the horseracing industry.

“Horseracing owners and trainers are under the microscope for much of the year, and any abuse of any of these animals would not be tolerated or supported by the industry. In addition to running the sport of horse racing in KwaZulu-Natal, Gold Circle also actively supports the Coastal Horse Care Unit that exists to ensure that thoroughbreds are well looked after when they reach the end of their racing days.

“Every year there is a public event around the Vodacom Durban July targeting alleged abuse of racehorses. We fully recognise the rights of these groups to stage these pickets. Equally, we would welcome any contact with these groups when they feel they have an issue relating to allegations of unfair treatment of racehorses at any stage in the year,” Marshall said.