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ecently, following a tip-off, the Islamabad Food Authority conducted a surprise raid in the capital city suburbs. It seized around 1,000 kg donkey meat and at least 45 donkeys lined up for slaughter at an unregistered facility.
Another surprise for the raiding team was finding a Chinese butcher, namely Zongwei, running the facility. Other people involved in the operation managed to escape.
The whistleblower had told the raiding team that donkey meat was being sold at a particular location.
According to a senior district administration official, there was no record of the slaughterhouse and no permission letter or no objection certificate was produced. The arrested Chinese citizen, later sent to jail by police, did not disclose details about the business either.
The seized donkey meat was allegedly being supplied to local markets and exported. Later, an impression was created that the donkey meat was being prepared for export.
“We are investigating where the meat was being delivered. We will share the findings with the media,” Deputy Commissioner Irfan Memon said in a video message.
The slaughterhouse, as seen in viral videos clips, was huge and appeared to be fully operational. The authorities claimed that the seized meat was destroyed to prevent it from entering the local food supply chain.
The revelation that a donkey slaughter facility had been operating near Islamabad aroused suspicion and disgust in the residents of Islamabad. Some said they had grown wary of consuming meat being supplied in local restaurants and grocery stores.
“It is a matter of grave concern that donkey meat is being prepared close to the capital city and that a Chinese citizen has been found to be operating the business without permission,” commented Tanveer Ahmed, a citizen.
“This is serious negligence. The administration has clearly failed to ensure public health and food safety. They can’t give Chinese citizens a free hand to run all sorts of businesses without any checks.”
“This is serious negligence. The administration has clearly failed to ensure public health and food safety concerns. They can’t give Chinese citizens a freehand to run all sorts of businesses without any checks.”
Another citizen, Majid Ghani, said that he could not have imagined that such a place existed in Islamabad. “The fact that it [donkey slaughterhouse] actually existed and was functional has raised major concerns about the hygiene and ethical protocols in abattoirs,” he said. “What if they slaughter other animals too and those make their way to our plates?” he asked.
The district administration and police have not provided further details to the media about this slaughterhouse raid. Requests to the Islamabad Food Authority for comment on the issue have been declined.
Questions addressed to the police were forwarded to the DC’s office which directed The News on Sunday back to the police spokesmen, stating that they were investigating the matter. The police spokesman, however, refused comment.
There was a feeling that this lack of transparency was a deliberate administrative tactic aimed at hushing up the matter.
“I think ensuring food safety should be the priority in this situation. The administration must provide us with more information on this incident,” Ahmed Abdullah, another Islamabad resident, said.
Officials at the Ministry of National Food Security & Research have also expressed concern on the unlicensed operation.
No Chinese business has so far been authorised to run such a business in Pakistan. However, there have been reports that a couple of applications for such businesses are under review. Exports will likely be routed through Gwadar, which has been designated as the sole processing and export point for the trade, officials say.
A recent Pakistan Bureau of Statistics report suggested that the number of donkeys in Pakistan has been rising. It was 6.047 million in this year’s count as compared to previous year’s 5.938 million. There have been reports in the past that China is interested in donkey meat, skin and bones export for food, cosmetics and traditional Chinese medicine.
The author is a staff reporter. He can be reached at vaqargillanigmail.com