Our activities during November also continue with the same pace and intensity. Everything we did, we took part in and what we planned can be found in this issue of AnimaList:

- 'T4-Work in Progress' performance and Eternal Treblinka book promotion
- Protest against circus and founding of our new branch in Slavonski Brod
- 13 Croatian towns banned circuses with animal acts so far!
- Charlie isn't homed yet!
- Festival of the New Circus
- Anti-fur performance in Maribor
- News and announcement

'T4-Work in Progress' performance and Eternal Treblinka book promotion

On Saturday, 5 November 2005, many citizens were surprised to see Robert Francizsty's performance 'T4-Work in Progress' in downtown Zagreb, which was organized as announcement to the Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust by Charles Patterson book promotion.

Slaughtered chickens, a doll, a gas mask, a trolley, shoes, feather, sirens, a hook and chains were amongst the items used by the artist who was assisted by the fire swallower Senata Hren, the narrator Nina Coric, the composer of background acoustics Igor Bogdanic and the video director Drazen Jeren. This graphic performance presented the horrors that animals in intensive factory farming go through day by day and thus announced the book promotion which was held at the Faculty of Arts four days later.

At the Eternal Treblinka book promotion lecturers Andrea Feldman, Hrvoje Juric, Suzana Marjanic, and Zoran Cica triggered an interesting debate amongst sixty-odd visitors which, contrary to the previous promotion six months earlier being filled with provocations from a small part of the audience, went by peacefully. It would have lasted even longer than two and a half hours if the Faculty didn't have to close its doors.

Protest against circus and founding of our new branch in Slavonski Brod

On 10 November, AFC activists held an evening protest in front of the Gärtner circus in Slavonski Brod, another protest in line after protests in Krizevci, Dugo Selo, Velika Gorica, Samobor, Karlovac, Umag, Pula, Labin, Zadar, Sibenik, Vir and Sisak. Our activists this time too invited townsmen to the boycott of this circus shows by leafleting about cruelty to animals in circuses. After the protest, our Zagreb team joined forces with the activists from Slavonski Brod and founded our new branch.

13 Croatian towns banned circuses with animal acts so far!

It is paradoxical: whilst some towns still host circus Gärtner, other towns ban circuses with all animal acts!

After Mursko Sredisce, Varazdin, Velika Gorica, Rovinj, Split, and Donji Miholjac, seven more towns banned circuses with animal acts! Animal Friends congratulate the mayors and the town governments of these towns and invite you to send them a thank-you note with a few words of support to their e-mail addresses:

- Mrs Biserka Vranic, the mayores of Ozalj, gradozalj@email.t-com.hr
- Mr Ante Karamatic, the mayor of Ploce, gradonacelnik@ploce.hr
- Mr Dragutin Glavina, the mayor of Prelog, dragutin.glavina@grad-prelog.t-com.hr
- Mr Branko Salamon, the mayor of Cakovec, gradonacelnik@cakovec.hr
- Mr Josip Turina, the mayor of Kraljevica, grad-kraljevica@ri.t-com.hr
- Mr Milan Kolic, the mayor of Gospic, grad-gospic@gs.htnet.hr
- Mr Marijan Plese, the mayor of Delnice, gradonacelnik@delnice.hr.

Charlie isn't homed yet!

In cooperation with the City Department for Agriculture and Forestry and the City Shelter for Abandoned Animals in Dumovec Animal Friends Croatia, with the media support of the Croatian celebrities Robert Boskovic, Lana Klingor and Nikolina Pisek, organized a homing-action for injured dogs as well as the dogs which are waiting for their homes very long.

During the action two wounded dogs were homed but, unfortunately, none of the abandoned dogs from the shelter in Dumovec, which at the moment is under reconstruction. For this reason, the dogs from this shelter will be forced to stay chained at the open, even though each one of them has his/her own doghouse.

Thus, the eight-years-old cross-bred terrier Charlie who doesn’t need a lot of activity, the gentle cross-bred labrador Bony-Lara who has already been three years in the shelter, and shaggy cross-bred terrier Mimi who had ended up in the shelter because of chronicle famished condition are still waiting for someone to give them home.

Festival of the New Circus

The mayor of Mursko Sredisce, Mr Rudolf Klennert, and the mayor of Velika Gorica, Mr Tonino Picula, proved that circuses with animal acts are history by banishing them from their towns whereby they also decided to take further steps for the welfare of animals in their towns. At the press conference on 15 November, which took place in Bogdan Ogrizovic library, they supported the initiative of the Festival of the New Circus director Mr Ivan Kralj which took place from 10 to 18 November in Zagreb.

The Festival of the New Circus is the first circus/theatre festival in this part of Europe and it features high-quality shows from Finland, France, and Great Britain, as well as Croatian production. What was most interesting to us is that none of the shows had robotized acts with animals!

Anti-fur performance in Maribor

On 18 November, four Animal Friends activists joined activists from Maribor and Ljubljana who, with the support of Slovenian teen pop star Sebastian, held an interesting performance in the center of Maribor. An activist from Slovenian Ljudje za group 'intercepted' a young singer in a fur coat and, as in PETA's (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) ad, clubbed him with a few precise strokes and walked away with his fur coat. Numerous media representatives were present at the performance. Sebastian explained his taking part in this performance by saying: 'I am completely against buying and wearing fur. Humans do not need fur at all. Killing animals is not humane. I urge people to become aware and not wear fur with all my heart.'

The video of the performance is available at www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr/filmovi/sebastian.wmv or www.ljudjeza.org/koledar/18nov05/18112005.html.

News and announcement

- On 8 November at the Municipal Court in Vrbovec the first hearing of Ostoja Babic was scheduled, who last December violently beat up his dog to death. Since he didn't appear in court, Babic will be brought to the new hearing under coercion. The sentence will be spoken after the second trial.

- On 9 November in Zagreb in regard to the World Physics Year, horse experiments were conducted during which horses had to pull a half-ball, six from each end. Exploitation and torture of animals for the revival of the experiments from 1654 is not suitable for the 21st century.

- In two elementary schools in Zagreb presentations of our organization were held, wherein students were introduced to the different aspects of protection of animals and their rights.

- After our report of Ivo Covic due to badger hunting with dogs and killing them for their grease, the inspection supervision prohibited Covic to hunt and kill wild animals in nature. A misdemeanor charge against Covic was brought to court in Zupanja because of the Veterinary Law and Animal Welfare Act violations.

- The animal abuser, who in June this year abandoned his dog chained to a bench in a park in Zagreb, on 20 November killed his new dog by throwing her from his fifth floor apartment. The dog was suffering for 20 minutes in great pain before death. The Zagreb Association of Animal Welfare Organizations and the organizations Futura and Animal Friends Croatia reported the case to the State Attorney of the City of Zagreb demanding the maximum penalty for the murderer.

- Split's eco groups and animal protection organizations including Arka, Marjan society, Prijatelji kulturne bastine, Eko Jezinac, Matejuska, Picigin Bacvice, SEP-Plavi Planet, Sunce, Terra, Zeleni Dalmacije and Animal Friends Croatia have launched an initiative for closure of the Split ZOO Marjan and improvement of scientific institutions in Split.

- We invite our local activists to a protest in front of Antun Brkic's building, the beagles' bone breaker, who continues working and lecturing at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in Zagreb. At the protest on Saturday, 26 November, in Zagreb, the rescued beagles whom Brkic fractured bones will be present, too.

We thank you for being with us and supporting us and invite you to join us in our future activities and strives towards positive social changes,

Animal Friends Croatia