Hundreds of kangaroos at the Belconnen Naval Transmission station, Canberra, Australia, have been slaughtered. Protests - both in Australia and overseas -- caused a suspension of the action - until May 19, 2008. In this photograph, the fences, covered in hessian, through which the animals are to be herded to a killing yard, can be seen.

Latest news about the slaughter: http://www.kangaroolives.com

FRIDAY, MAY 16, 2008

All the fences are up at dusk, and the chiller boxes to take the carcasses are ready. 'That's Cool' freezer hire, reads the sign. Two bewildered kangaroos stand at the entrance to the killing yard. They are surrounded by a maze of temporary fencing. The Department of Defence has contracted their immediate killing. Until tonight (May 15), the public, here and overseas, were unaware that contractors were secretly arranging for the slaughter. They were told that translocation plans were underway. Late tonight (June 16) security vehicles were criss crossing the area in order to stop protesters getting on site. The kangaroos are to be herded, en masse, into this yard and darted, then killed. Because the government fears the killing might be seen by the press and public, it is now likely that it will be attempted in a rush at night, despite the likelihood of even more chaos and injury to the animals before death. This action underlines Australia's hypocrisy: while protesting whale hunting by the Japanese, it arrogantly sanctions the killing of 3.6 million of its kangaroos a year.

Below: an alarmed kangaroo attempts to flee as human activity increases on the base. (May 15, 2008)

Below: The same family shown at the top of the page tonight, dusk, May 16, 2008, did not survive the coming days. The Defence Department now says that the cost of relocating (moving) them is too expensive, citing $3.5 million. It refuses to say how much this contract killing will cost.