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Agreement Ceremony for Shutdown of Gupo Livestock Market and Event of Transferring Rescued Animals Were Held

Contents

“LIFE, Gupo Livestock Market will be remembered in the history”

Date: July 1, 2019

Contact:

Agriculture & Livestock Distribution Division

(Animal Welfare Team)

(051)888-5002

Press Release

◈ Mayor Oh Keo-don handed dogs rescued from Gupo Livestock Market into a transferring vehicle to move them to animal shelters

◈“Agreement on shutdown of Gupo Livestock Market” was made between Buk-gu District Mayor and the representative of Gupo Livestock Market vendors

◈ The number of reporters who gathered around in Buk-gu District was the biggest since it was organized. Members of animal protection groups and citizens watching the moment shed tears.

Busan Metropolitan City - Mayor Oh Keo-don signed an agreement on complete shutdown of Gupo Livestock Market with Buk-gu District Mayor Jeong Myeong-hui, Lawmaker Jeon Jae-soo, and President of Livestock Organization in Gupo Market Park Yong-soon in Gupo Livestock Market, Buk-gu, Busan, on July 1, 2019. The date of signing ceremony coincides with 1-year anniversary of inauguration of Mayor Oh Keo-don’s office.

Since it was the first complete shutdown of a livestock market in Korea, Urban Agriculture Support Center, where the ceremony was held, in Gupo Market was crowded with reporters, members of animal protection groups, and vendors. Citizens said “the biggest number of people from the press came here since Buk-gu District was organized” for a joke.

Park Yong-soon, the President of Livestock Organization in Gupo Market, said “quitting a job that a vendor has done for dozens of years is just the same as dying for him/her. We decided to shut down the livestock market because Busan Metropolitan City Government tried to maintain coexistence between us and considered living of the vendors first during negotiation unlike the past one-sided tear-down.” in the beginning of the ceremony.

In this regard, Mayor Oh Keo-don said “I appreciate your historic decision on shutdown of Gupo Livestock Market that other livestock markets still cannot make. We could sign the agreement because all people gathering here including the vendors have the principle of respecting life.” The members of the animal protection groups shed tears here and there.

After the signing ceremony, Mayor Oh Keo-don and officers moved to the Livestock Market street and transferred animals rescued from the crisis of slaughter to animal shelters. Mayor Oh Keo-don took off his jacket and handed cages carrying the rescued dogs into a transferring truck. The members of the animal protection groups and the citizens watching the moment applauded with acclamations all together. Reporters intensely compete with each other to take good photographs of the scene.

Mayor Oh Keo-don wrote a commemorating phrase, “LIFE, Gupo Lifestock Market will be remembered in the history” in the event of transferring the rescued animals. Total 85 animals were rescued and transferred to the animal shelters on this day. Mayor Oh Keo-don shouted “let’s start toward happiness!” Then, three trucks carrying the animals moved to the animal shelters leaving Gupo Livestock Market, which had been the place of a matter of life or death. The animal protection groups will put up the rescued animals for international adoption.

The members of the animal protection groups who watched the ceremony and event from beginning to end further continued their own events and said “we maintained our campaign of animal abuse eradication for 14 years in front of Gupo Livestock Market but could not image that complete shutdown really comes true like today. We are deeply moved and truly appreciate that Busan Metropolitan City Government made this historic event happen.”

After the signing ceremony on July 1, 2019, the vendors will stop slaughtering live animals and displaying animal meats in Gupo Livestock Market and close down the businesses in 10 days. The livestock market will be completely shut down on July 11.