Italian prisoner in Spain

Urgent ELP! Bulletin (31st of October 2007)

Dear friends

Earlier this month an Italian couple, living in Spain, discovered their three pet dogs had escaped from their keep and had ended up in the local dog pound. The couple went around to the pound to discover the pound had killed their dogs!

The couple (known animal rights activists) started a local campaign against the dog pound. However during a protest outside the pound the couple (along with two others) were arrested and ELP has learnt that one of the Italians, Simone Righi, has been remanded into custody!

Not only has he seen his dogs killed, Simone has now been jailed for merely protesting against the killing of his dogs!

Please send urgent letters of support to:

para: SIMONE RIGHI - INGRESO -
CENTRO PENITENCIARIO DE PUERTO II
CTRA.JEREZ - ROTA, KM 5,4
11500 - PUERTO DE SANTA MARIA - ESPAÑA (Spain)

For more information about the campaign against the dog pound visit

http://www.dogwelcome.it/spagna2007.html

For more information about Simone's arrest, please see the below article:

http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_13250.shtml

Animal rights association campaigns against Puerto Real pound at the
centre of animal abuse allegations

By m.p. - Oct 25, 2007 - 8:32 PM

El Refugio wants Town Halls in the area to cancel their contracts with
the pound

The animal rights association, has started a campaign calling on Town
Halls in the area to cancel their contracts with the Puerto Real dog
pound which is at the centre of allegations of animal abuse.

Four arrests were made at the pound earlier this month after an Italian
couple reported that their three dogs had been killed when they went to
collect them. The couple were themselves arrested after altercations at
an animal rights protest in Cádiz City, where the Mayor and City Hall
councillors were allegedly assaulted. One was released on 3,000 [Euros] bail,
while her partner, Simone R., remains in prison on remand. Both appeared
in court on Wednesday in the court investigation into the pound.

El Refugio campaign uses as its star one of the animals the
association has taken in: Mona, a three year old mongrel who was rescued
along with her nine puppies and who has now has now been rehomed.

Other animals were not so lucky: El Refugio quotes the official figure
for this year for the number of cats and dogs put down at the Puerto
Real pound, and says all 566 may have suffered a slow agonising death by
a method which induces muscular paralysis and asphyxia.

They are calling on those who live in the area to contact the Town Halls
concerned and ask them to withdraw their contracts. Details on El
Refugio web page http://www.elrefugio.org