ADI Said, Demand For Dog Meat Is High Because It Is Claimed To Be A Cure For COVID-19

JAKARTA – Head of Animal Defenders Indonesia (ADI), Doni Herdaru, again spoke about the polemic of the dog meat trade in Jakarta. Doni explains why he has only recently become critical of the sale of dog meat.

This activist said that in fact he and his colleagues had investigated the sale of dog meat since 2001. However, Doni said, his party did not have the power to carry out raids with the Food, Maritime, and Agriculture Security Agency (DKPKP).

"About the sale of dog meat in Block III PD Pasar Jaya. Many people are worried about why dog meat is sold with other meats, is it legal? In 2017, we investigated asking volunteers to confirm and we asked to be raided together with DKPKP but it was not their authority, they did not have the power to raid. But because we don't want to have polemics for too long, we said we'll take care of it next time", Doni said in a statement received by VOI, Sunday, September 12.

Entering the pandemic period, Doni noticed the increasing demand for dog meat. After research, said Doni, it turns out that dog meat is claimed to be a cure for COVID-19.

"Seeing the high demand for dog meat, if it is made into soup, it can be a cure for COVID-19. In the past, during the DHF era, it was used as a DF drug. The September 7 second investigation is still on. Some are casually selling at the B2 (pork) booth", Doni said.

From the results of Doni's investigation with his colleagues, they found out that most of the requests for dog meat came from restaurants.

“Previously we summoned online food delivery services because they facilitated the wrong thing. They admitted that it had been arranged in their revised regulations after we gave a friendly reminder. We will respond to their response letters which we are still discovering for sale", Doni concluded.