Vacation Nightmare: Bali Cab Drivers Promote Illegal Animal Fights to Tourists
Foreign tourists are being lured to disgusting cockfighting spectacles in Bali, where frightened roosters are forced to slice each other to the bone to prop up illegal gambling operations.
Disturbing, video footage from the first-ever PETA Asia investigation into the cruel events reveals that terrified roosters have sharp razors strapped to their feet and are forced to fight to the death in front of jeering crowds where illegal gambling runs rampant – and Bali cab drivers are promoting the cruel spectacles to unsuspecting tourists.
If the birds don’t kill each other quickly enough, they’re trapped together under a small basket until one slashes the other to death – and even the “victor” is likely to sustain fatal injuries. When not being forced to fight, the roosters are typically confined to baskets, where they’re unable to roam, forage for food, bask in the sun, or engage in any natural behaviours. Many are tied to makeshift treadmills and made to run in circles or jump from heights, often with weights attached to their legs, to build up their muscles.
Under Article 303 of the Indonesian Criminal Code (KUHP), gambling is a criminal offence punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment and substantial fines.
Chickens form complex social structures, dream when they sleep, and worry about the future, just as humans do, but in cockfights, they can suffer from punctured lungs, broken bones, and gouged eyes, and survivors’ injuries are rarely treated. Before the fight, many birds are pre-emptively mutilated—their feathers are torn out and their wattles and combs are painfully hacked off with shears—all so their “opponent” can’t do so in the ring.
PETA urges tourists to stay far away from this sickening bloodsport, and if they’re invited to attend a cockfight, report it to local authorities.
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