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The 1980's and
1990's saw a Europe-wide focus on the cruelty of the tradition of
dancing bears, and a number of welfare groups established
sanctuaries around Europe where confiscated dancing bears could live
out their days in humane conditions. As a result the dancing bear
tradition is now almost extinct in Europe. However, throughout the
western Balkans (e.g. Bosnia, Albania) there is an equally cruel,
and largely ignored problem - that of keeping wild animals, often
bears and wolves, captive at road side cafes as an attraction for
guests. As this picture from Bosnia illustrates, the animals are
kept in terrible conditions. It serves to illustrate just how much
work remains to change people's attitudes with respect to the ethics
that dictate our interaction with the natural world and its wild
creatures. |
