Live export cattle on a truck outside Darwin. Footage obtained by animal activists allegedly shows cattle in Vietnam being hit repeatedly to the head to stun them before slaughter. Photograph: Dave Hunt/AAP
It seems that Vietnam has a history of slaughtering live animals with sledgehammers. It's the traditional way of killing food animals when they are ready for slaughter.
The Guardian is
reporting about the big hoopla this is causing in Australia, where investigation has revealed that live cattle that they have exported to Vietnam are being slaughtered using the traditional sledgehammer method.
Australia says it will not cease export of live animals to Vietnam because, well, Tony Abbott is currently Prime Minister and for him it's all about profit.
Vietnam is one of the twelve countries negotiating the secret TPP (along with the US). How are we to know if these traditional practices will be curtailed?
This, I'm sure, is just one of many examples of practices of member nations which we will have no control over if the TPP is passed as it is probably written. I say probably because who the hell knows? It's all secret.