September 22, 2014
Jakarta to ban slaughter of chicken in villages
The city government of Jakarta in Indonesia will ban people living in villages from slaughtering poultry by January next year.
Jakarta Deputy Governor Basuki "Ahok" TjahajaPurnama said the new regulation is meant to protect residents from various diseases like the avian flu.
From next year, the official said, the government would strictly enforce a law passed in 2007 which mandates the city government to kill all poultry raised by growers not accredited by the government.
The new regulation, the deputy governor said, is certain to create a storm of protests from village residents who raise chickens and other fowls in their backyards for additional income.
"I know that people will protest against us. However, we have no other choice. We have to take firm action instead of seeing an increasing number of people dying in Jakarta because of such diseases," he said on Monday.