B.C. farmers support beefed up trespassing laws to deter animal-rights activists
Credit to Author: Glenda Luymes| Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2019 20:28:41 +0000
Agassiz dairy farmer Julaine Treur began sharing photos of her cows on social media five years ago.
It was a way to engage with consumers hungry to know more about where their food comes from, she said. “It never crossed my mind that we would encounter anything negative.”
Then the death threats began.
Her posts, which often show cows grazing in green fields, began to receive a barrage of negative comments. In one, she was called a “sadistic psychopath rapist murderer.” Another mentioned her kids.
The comments intensified after Treur shared her concerns over the occupation of an Abbotsford hog farm by animal activists in late April.
“It was getting so bad my kids were scared,” she said. “The dogs would bark in the middle of the night, and we’d jump out of bed expecting the worst.”
A few weeks ago, Treur invited Chilliwack-Kent MLA Laurie Throness to her organic farm to explain what was happening.
The result was a private member’s bill tabled this past week at the B.C. legislature, proposing fines for trespassing on farms and food-processing facilities, with larger fines for people who breach biosecurity protocols and groups that organize occupations.
Throness said the bill was modelled, in part, after similar legislation announced in October by Alberta Premier Jason Kenney at a Hutterite turkey farm that was also targeted by activists.
“We don’t want to limit protest,” he said. “But we need to protect our farmers. They have families, they have little kids, and these are their homes.”
Agriculture Minister Lana Popham was unavailable for an interview this week, but she also addressed trespassing at a B.C. Ag Day reception in Victoria on Tuesday, telling farmers she wanted to “speak directly and publicly in support of those of you that raise livestock.”
“We are working hard to deter people who trespass on your property, and damage your farm equipment, and endanger the animals in your care,” she said. “We understand the current rules are not stopping illegal protesting activity and we have already taken a number of steps to address this problem.”
She went on to introduce Solicitor General Mike Farnworth and Attorney General David Eby to the crowd, saying she had their support.
Julaine Treur, owner of Creekside Dairy, took to social media with photos of her livestock, only to encounter death threats and other online abuse.
But Vancouver Humane Society director Peter Fricker said stricter trespassing laws would decrease transparency and accountability on farms.
“We understand why people would feel compelled to trespass in order to bring it to the public’s attention,” he said. “We don’t think there’s a need for increased penalties.”
Fricker said the agriculture industry has set itself up for trouble with slick marketing campaigns.
“They’ve given what we think is a false impression to the public. If they don’t tell the public what really happens, concerned citizens are more likely to take matters into their own hands.”
Farming groups applauded the political promises.
B.C. Pork Producers Association chair Jack Dewit said the province’s trespassing laws need “some teeth.”
“These occupations are a real violation of privacy and they pose a big risk for biosecurity,” he said, explaining that swine flu can easily be transferred through people entering a barn.
Dewit said the family who owns the Abbotsford hog farm targeted by activists remain “shell-shocked” by the experience and continue to received hate mail.
The B.C. SPCA confirmed Friday that charges will not be laid against the farm in relation to a hidden-camera video that was taken without the farmers’ knowledge and released to media.
“As the evidence that was gathered was taken illegally, Crown advised they would not be able to pursue … charges in this case,” said SPCA spokeswoman Lorie Chortyk.
The video showed dead pigs and animals being herded with prods.
In a statement accompanying the media release of the footage, animal cruelty lawyer Anna Pippus identified what she called “a number of clear code of practice violations, and other potential violations.”
Meanwhile, Abbotsford Police Const. Rob Dyck said the results of their investigation into the occupation at the farm are before Crown counsel for charge approval. No other information was available.
In October, one of the activists detained during the occupation issued a plea for help with her legal fees, saying she was in a “legal tornado.”