Sheep ship still all at sea
2003-10-13 13:14
Sydney - A so-called "ship of death" with more than 50,000 Australian sheep on board has been held up again in Kuwait, the government said on Monday, as farmers launched a last-ditch attempt to prevent their return.
The MV Cormo Express had been expected to leave late Monday. But a spokesman for Agriculture Minister Warren Truss said problems supplying the ship with fodder meant it could be mid-week before it departs.
The National Farmers Federation and allied livestock groups want the sheep slaughtered at sea, fearing their return could introduce exotic diseases or at least provoke doubts in other countries about the quality of Australian meat. They dispute government claims that it would be impractical and on Monday prepared to lobby government officials on the issue.
The government is determined to bring the sheep back to Australia if no country can be found to take them, but has said the ship will set sail first for the Cocos Islands, an Australian possession in the Indian Ocean where there is a quarantine station.
Saudi Arabia rejected the sheep in August, claiming they were diseased, a claim which independent vets have said is untrue. However, more than five thousand of the animals have died, mainly of heat and exhaustion.
Animal welfare activists also say the sheep should be slaughtered at sea and say the government is only opposed to the idea because it fears more bad publicity.