As the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) prepares to fully open it doors on Saturday, the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is calling on the country’s president to allocate some of the museum’s revenue in support of animals giving tourist rides to the museum and surrounding historic sites in Giza.
Today, PETA Asia sent a letter to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi notifying him of PETA’s recently released video footage of the dead bodies of horses and camels stacked outside the new museum’s walls.
“Every single day, they are dumped like trash, and the world is horrified,” the letter from PETA senior vice president Jason Baker reads. “While millions of visitors will be drawn to the GEM because of Egypt’s cultural achievements, they may also witness animals being beaten, denied water, and forced to work until their bodies give out, their lifeless bodies piling up just beyond the walls of the pyramids. Such suffering devastates the animals and harms Egypt’s international reputation as a leading, compassionate tourist destination.”
The video shows the bodies dumped along the side of the road, many appearing emaciated and wounded. Their treatment has been documented by PETA over the last six years. According to the organization, these animals have been punched, kicked, whipped, starved, and forced to carry people in the heat without shade or adequate water, before being left for dead or slaughtered when they are no longer of use.
In an effort to rectify the situation, PETA wrote, “We urge you to allocate a portion of the museum’s profits to create a sanctuary that would relocate and retire every single horse and camel from the pyramids area.” Adding that, “Establishing such a refuge would demonstrate Egypt’s moral leadership and signal to the world that kindness and heritage can coexist in harmony.”
Since PETA began its efforts, more than 50 tour operators and travel companies, including Airbnb, Marriott, British Airways Holidays, Abercrombie & Kent Travel Group, and TCS World Travel, have stopped offering camel rides to the Giza pyramids.
PETA has also asked members and supporters to sign a petition asking Egyptian officials to ban the use of horses and camels to transport visitors to the pyramids and other tourist sites.
The letter ends with an appeal from PETA to President El-Sisi to “use this historic moment to honor Egypt’s past and its boundless capacity for mercy and progress.”
