OFA's position and clarifying statement regarding our support for FPAM's legal actions against the Romanian government and the ANVSA

Due to a quite unpleasant and very sad event that occurred on our page on 16th of March, 2014 when OFA had been attacked by a British rescuer in our post where we tried to help FPAM to gather evidence and witness testimonies for their lawsuit against the Romanian government and the ANVSA, and because said rescuer continues to spread misinformation about our organisation without giving people access to the full information, we now - sadly - feel obliged to issue the following clarifying statement:

We have tried to explain our position to said rescuer in quite a few emails and hours long discussions without any result and even worse: to judge from the content of the latest mail that said rescuer has sent to us tonight, this person did, very obviously, not even bother to open our link and to have a look at the proof for FPAM's lawsuit which is the legal document and which can be read on our website, along with the collaboration protocol that FPAM had signed with Victor Ponta and Daniel Constantin - at that time the leaders of the USL party - on 21st of December, 2011 and which clearly states, among others, that the euthanasia of stray dogs is banned. This contract goes until 21st of December, 2020.

You can read both documents, at: http://www.occupyforanimals.org/romania---fpam-takes-legal-actions-against-the-romanian-government-and-anvsa.html

IN CLEAR:

Occupy for Animals has no affiliation whatsoever with the Romanian group FPAM.

Contrary to what is being told by the British rescuer, we are neither supporting nor defending them, or any of their actions. We are simply trying to help them to gather evidence and witness testimonies for their legal actions against both the Romanian government and the ANVSA because we believe this to be a true chance to turn the situation in Romania around.

Their apparent inability to enact any change to shelter conditions inside their country, as claimed by said rescuer, has been noted. What we do know is that previous legal actions which they have introduced have been successful and maybe they function better at this higher political level than at the grassroots level of the shelters.

So what we have is an organisation which has attracted the contempt of this British rescuer, but they introduced a legal challenge which we would all have sought to introduce, namely one to stop the killing. If we were Romanian, we would have sought to achieve exactly what FPAM have just done. We would have sought to introduce a legal action. But we can't, we are not from Romania.

A legal action by FPAM is critically important and it is unwise to interfere at this moment, to not support this important action, let alone to boycott it.

This would be a betrayal of all Romanian dogs and their protectors and we must endorse one of the very few possibilities to stop the horrors which all of us together in our different ways wish to see ended.

It may only be a small chink of light at the end of a long dark tunnel but it IS a light in the darkness, and OFA will always simply support any honest possibility for positive change which benefits the people and animals of Romania.

Personal perspectives and differences are deemed irrelevant when such opportunities are presented.

FPAM will challenge and seek to prevent the Law 258/2013 from being enacted and this is exactly what every animal lover seeks to be achieved. Any opposition to this is counter to the potential health and safety of all Romanian animals.

The action has already been filed at the Romanian Court of Appeal and we should ALL applaud and welcome this action and we are, again, calling on all our Romanian friends to support FPAM in their lawsuit against the Romanian government and the ANVSA by submitting their evidence. People from abroad who have visited shelters and witnessed neglect or abuse can also submit their evidence which must be legalized at a notary.

All information about this important action, including the collaboration protocol from 21st of December, 2011 and the legal documents that FPAM has submitted to the Romanian Court of Appeal, can be read on our website, at:

http://www.occupyforanimals.org/romania---fpam-takes-legal-actions-against-the-romanian-government-and-anvsa.html

This "issue" has taken up too much of our limited time already and we will not be responding to any further comments on this subject.

For all further information about this important lawsuit, about FPAM in general, or the claims made by the British rescuer, we respectfully suggest that you get in touch with FPAM directly. You can contact them by email at: office@fpam.ro

OFA supports FPAM's important legal actions against the Romanian government and will continue to do just that. Nothing more. Nothing less.

March 20, 2014

- Occupy for Animals -