US-China relations are at their lowest point in decades after the Alaska summit held in March. Major newspapers described the meeting as “contentious,” and that the two countries’ top diplomats were “trading sharp and unusually public barbs.” Some commented that the outcome “further lowers expectations for improvement of relations between the US and China.” With the world’s prosperity and stability at stake, Genlin, the founder of the World Dog Alliance (WDA), worked with politicians in the US, China, and Japan to campaign for the International Agreement to Prohibit the Eating of Dogs and Cats, with the hope of achieving “animal rights for great peace” through his innovative “Dog and Cat Diplomacy.”
WDA has a crucial partner in the US, Congressman Alcee Hastings, who united 30 bipartisan US Representatives to co-sign a letter to former President Donald Trump in February 2020, urging the US to initiate the International Agreement to Prohibit the Eating of Dogs and Cats. Genlin introduced Congressman Hastings to Japanese Senator Fujisue Kenzo, who then united 34 congressmen to co-sign a letter to Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide in December 2020, urging the Japanese government to initiate the same.
In his letter dated 8 March 2021, Congressman Hastings applauded Senator Fujisue’s work to advance animal rights in Japan; he also stressed the importance of the US and Japan jointly founding the International Agreement:
“The U.S. is placed in a strong position to partner with other nations such as Japan to make meaningful progress on an international ban.
“I look forward to future collaboration with you and the World Dog Alliance to end this terrible industry once and for all.”
Senator Fujisue responded to the letter by suggesting that the US-Japan leader summit in April would be an opportunity for the two countries to co-found the International Agreement:
“If President Joe Biden could propose the co-founding of the International Agreement to Prohibit the Eating of Dogs and Cats in the April summit, not only will this universal and non-partisan effort be welcomed by the American and Japanese people, it will also draw the world’s attention to the dog and cat meat issue.
I look forward to working with you and the World Dog Alliance on the International Agreement to save more dogs and cats from the dining table.”
On 17 March 2021, Genlin wrote to Congressman Hastings to share his vision on the founding nations coming together to sign the International Agreement:
“In China’s Two Sessions this year, there were a record-breaking number of bills related to animal protection.
An online poll revealed that the motion to establish an anti-animal abuse law is supported by 58% of the public…The result reflects the Chinese people’s strong awareness of animal protection.
China co-founding the International Agreement with the US and Japan would attract other Asian countries to join the rank of banning this horrific practice.”
After lobbying for the dog and cat meat ban in the US in 2018, Genlin, a China-born Japanese person, successfully called for Shenzhen to become the first Chinese city to outlaw this practice in 2020. In the same year, he founded the political party “Dog Cat Party,” and lobbied for the establishment of the Parliamentary League for Animal Welfare in Japan. “As the three largest economies in the world, the US, China, and Japan should seek collaboration on animal welfare topics that are of universal values,” said Genlin.
After being proposed by the World Dog Alliance in May 2019, the International Agreement to Prohibit the Eating of Dogs and Cats has garnered support from politicians around the world as it promotes multilateralism and universal values. Should it become a discussion point in the US-Japan summit in April, a light of hope will be shed on the welfare of dogs and cats on the planet.
Source: World Dog Alliance
