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PAWS seeks probe on depiction of animal cruelty in ‘Oro’


The filmmakers behind "Oro" are facing a brewing controversy as people who have seen the movie have raised concerns over a dog being slaughtered onscreen.

"Oro" is an official Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) entry inspired by the 2014 Gata 4 Massacre. Four miners—Julio Labiano, Rene Labiano, Salem Virtuz, and Jessie Brondia—were shot, allegedly by members of a certain Sagip Kalikasan Task Force (SKTF).

SKTF's counterpart in "Oro" is Patrol Kalikasan, whose members swoop into Gata and close down a mine due to lack of permit. The members later used the mine for their own gain.

In one scene, the members takes a villager's dog and the preparations for cooking it is showed onscreen.

The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) on Saturday posted a letter Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Thomas Orbos  and—in a move that echoes segments from the film—declared that the slaughtering of the dog was illegal as there was no permit filed to the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and the Committee on Animal Welfare (CAW).

"As a member of the CAW and the chairperson of the CAW Technical Working Group of the Committee on the Human Use of Animals in Media and Entertainment, the undersigned has —for the record — not received any information on a permit application being granted to film makers for such a scene, nor from any indigenous community seeking clearance for a ritual," PAWS Executive Director Anna Cabrera wrote.

"The dog slaughter that occurred is illegal. If the dog killing was not deliberately filmed, as stated by (Alvin Yapan, director of "Oro"), the film makers, at the very least, should have reported the incident to police so that the footage can be used as evidence and not as material for a movie," Cabrera continued.

Cabrera cited the Republic Act 8485 or the Animal Welfare Act, as amended by Republic Act 10631, to substantiate the need for an investigation.

Section 6 of the Animal Welfare Act states that "the killing of any animal other than cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, poultry, rabbits, carabao, horse, deer and crocodiles is likewise hereby declared unlawful" except in the following cases:

  • When it is done as part of the religious rituals of an established religion or sect or ritual required by ethnic custom of indigenous cultural communities: however, leaders shall keep records in cooperation with the Committee on Animal Welfare;
  • When the pet animal is afflicted with an incurable communicable disease as determined and certified by a duly licensed veterinarians;
  • When the killing is deemed necessary to put an end to the misery suffered by the animal as determined and certified by a duly licensed veterinarian;
  • When it is done to prevent an imminent danger to the life or limb of a human being; and
  • When done for the purpose of animal population control;
  • When animal is killed after it has been used in authorized research or experiments; and
  • Any other ground analogous to the foregoing as determined and certified by a licensed veterinarian.

Cabrera stated that filmmakers "must report crimes they inadvertently document" and that filmmakers who "set up" the slaughtering of a dog for the sake of making a movie "must be held accountable by their peers for their lack of compassion for animals, and for promoting a culture of indifference and callousness in society."

In a brief exchange with GMA News Online via chat, the filmmakers behind "Oro" said that they are already in contact with PAWS, the MMFF executive committee, and the Film Development Council of Philippines and are waiting for their advice on the issue. —ALG, GMA News

Tags: paws, oro, mmff2016
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