Proposed legislation to ban the eating of wild animals has sparkeda heated debate in south China's Guangdong Province where thepractice is steeped in centuries of tradition.

The proposed law, which follows the success in the fight againstSARS, comes amid a national soul-searching over the treatment ofanimals and attitudes to the natural environment.

During a three-hour public hearing on Tuesday of the draftregulation on improving public health, the clause on "prohibitionof the consumption of wild animals" caused heated debate.

All those who attended agreed with the intention of the legislationto "cut the channel of transmission of epidemic diseases throughwild animals," but most said the clause was unclear, not feasibleand might undermine the animal breeding industry.

InGuangdong, one of the most economically advanced provinces inChina, the trade in more than 100 varieties of wild animals at thecountry's largest wild animal market is worth 1.9 million yuan(US$230,000) every day.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) crisis in the firsthalf of the year seriously affected Guangdong.

Many provinces have since banned wild animal markets, althoughthere is still no direct evidence linking wild animals to the causeof the disease.

The China Wildlife Conservation Association has written a public letter, appealing for an end to the eating of wild animals. SouthChina's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region banned circuses from usinganimals in shows. East China's Anhui Province banned wildlifedishes in restaurants.

But legislating against the consumption of wild animals is no easytask. In Guangdong, the original version of the draft law had noclause on eating wild animals. By the end of May, the standingcommittee of the provincial People's Congress added clauses on theprohibition of the consumption of wild animals and strictermanagement of pets.

Inthe amended draft, the clause banned the eating of wild animals,but prescribed no penalties for violating the law.

Huang Qingdao, commissary of the Guangdong provincial People'sCongress standing committee, said they had merely proposed theconcept of respect for wild animals in the legislation.

The hearing attracted more than 1,000 applicants. Finally 22 peopleincluding experts, lawyers, officials, farmers, andconservationists attended, with more than 200 people observing.Local television stations and websites broadcast the hearinglive.

Proponents of the legislation argued that ending the practice ofeating wild animals would help prevent the transmission of virusesand protect the environment.

"We have just bid farewell to SARS. We are now facing warnings notonly from the province, or from the state. I think the whole worldis watching us. It's the demand of our environment and the world,"said Hong Xia, member from the Guangdong branch of Friends ofNature, an environmental protection organization.

Opponents expressed their fears that the animal breeding industrywould be undermined, and argued that the law would be impossible toenforce.

Gao Hong, an official from the Guangdong Committee of the ChinesePeople's Political Consultative Conference, said "wild animal" wasa dynamic concept as different areas adopted different views onwild animals at different times. Today's animals living in wildmight one day become domesticated. He suggested changing the clauseto "the prohibition of hunting and eating wild animals under stateprotection and those which pose health risks".

Many exotic animal breeders, who number more than 10,000 in theprovince, also strongly opposed the legislation.

Liu Yongming, who has been breeding American partridges for 19years, said, "There has been no epidemic disease found in ourvillage. My family has remained healthy. If the regulation ispassed, my life will be ruined."

Public submissions would be considered when the draft was presentedto the provincial People's Congress, said Zhong Qiquan,vice-chairman of the congress's standing committee and the sponsorof the hearing.

"We will adopt those opinions in accordance with Chinese laws andregulations, and Guangdong's special situation," said Zhong.

(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2003)