For a long time, South Koreans were outraged by the desire of Western animal rights activists to take away their right to eat dog meat. They made strong arguments for the normality of their tastes. But now the tradition is disappearing by itself

Animal activists from the groups Animal Liberation Wave and Last Chance for Animals are protesting against the dog meat trade. Seoul, July 2018 Photo: Ed Jones/AFP

On Thursday, November 22, Korean authorities began dismantling the country's largest dog slaughterhouse complex, located in the city of Seongnam. Under pressure from animal rights activists, the area that previously housed six slaughterhouses that slaughtered dogs to serve special cafes and restaurants will soon be cleared of relevant structures and equipment, and in their place the municipal authorities plan to set up a park.

Last year, in the same Seongnam, handicraft dog slaughterhouses that operated in the local Moran market, considered one of the main centers for the sale of dog meat in South Korea, were destroyed. Despite such measures, the sale of dog meat itself is still considered acceptable. Traders were only prohibited from displaying live dogs for buyers to choose from, which, after purchase, were slaughtered and butchered on the spot. Just as the current closure of slaughterhouses that support dog meat restaurants does not mean that those restaurants themselves automatically close. Dog meat now finds itself in a gray area in Korea - eating it is not prohibited, but it is increasingly something to be ashamed of. Moreover, this status of dog meat has been determined in the last decade. And this makes us think about whether there are any unshakable customs and habits in our world, and whether the protection of traditions always justifies the efforts made.

Olympics without the taste of dog meat

If you ask a resident of Russia in which country they eat dogs, the answer will almost certainly be Korea. Despite the fact that dog meat is quite acceptable in the cuisine of some regions of China, and is also eaten in Southeast Asia, it was Korea that turned out to be the place on Earth with which the “enlightened world” has a strong association with eating dogs. And this is due, not least of all, to how Koreans themselves have treated their culinary tradition for at least the last 30 years. Although there have been debates about the extent to which it is acceptable and acceptable to eat dogs in previous years, one of the important turning points at the time was the country's preparation for hosting the Seoul Olympics in 1988. Then, preparing to receive delegations from all over the world, the authorities especially tried to eliminate everything that could negatively affect the country’s reputation in the eyes of foreign guests. It was then that restaurants and eateries serving dog meat were decided to be removed from the main city streets and moved somewhere to the back. At the time, the authorities' decision was met with indignation. Defenders of traditional values ​​believed that the authorities were showing unacceptable servility towards foreigners and that there was no need to fuss with the feelings of guests when it comes to ordinary national food. However, worried about the country's reputation, the authorities went even further, declaring the raising of dogs for slaughter and the production of dog meat illegal in 1988. However, no punishment was established for violating this law. The actions of the officials seemed to emphasize that the state was experiencing some embarrassment from the existence of the custom, but would not act with direct prohibitions.

A Seoul restaurant waitress serves dog meat to students at the French Lyceum on April 12, 2002. French activists have condemned the consumption of dog meat in Korea and stepped up their campaign ahead of the World Cup finals. Photo: Kim Jae-Hwan/AFP

Guarding traditions

The first reaction to the bans was outrage. At the same time, criticism from foreigners, of course, caused particular irritation. For a long time, the campaign against the slaughter of dogs for meat in Korea was led by Brigitte Bardot, who, after leaving the film industry, devoted herself to protecting animal rights. She publicly called this tradition “barbaric.” In response, Bardo began to receive thousands of indignant letters, the senders of which did not advise the representative of a country where they eat snails and frogs to discuss someone’s culinary traditions.

When South Korea and Japan were scheduled to host the FIFA World Cup in 2002, FIFA called on the republic to ban the trade in dog meat and dog dishes out of respect for the feelings of the championship guests. In response, a group of Korean parliamentarians took the initiative to immediately restore legal status to the sale of dog meat as a protest against shameless interference in the country's affairs.

Of course, the indignation at foreign criticism and the pointing out the hypocrisy and hypocrisy of representatives of Western countries lamenting the fate of Korean dogs was not uniform. In Korean society even in those days there were opponents of eating dog meat, who were skeptical about the value of this custom. Nevertheless, the voice of the defenders of tradition was strong. In the end, they could be understood. Eating dog meat is no more terrible than eating any other meat. Moreover, a special type of dog is used for food in Korea, close to Spitz dogs, which were traditionally raised specifically for subsequent slaughter - no personal relationship is established with these dogs, they are not members of someone’s family. It is difficult to say what kind of character and intelligence a dog has, which for generations has been selected only for the quality of its meat.

The dog enters the house

However, with all these completely reliable arguments that could allow everyone to continue to eat dog meat, feeling like sensible traditionalists, something in Korean society began to change on its own.

As Korea prepared for its next major sporting event, the Pyeongchang Olympics, organizers preferred to talk about eating dog meat as a dying tradition. The chairman of the Pyeongchang 2018 organizing committee, Kim Jin-sung, responded to a corresponding question asked of him during the Olympics in Sochi, and replied that this time he does not expect any protests about eating dogs, since no one eats dog meat in the country now. In any case, he does not know a single such person in his environment. Of course, the outright cunning of an official does not require exposure. And yet, even for such a denial of the obvious, there are some grounds. Koreans are indeed eating less and less dogs and are inclined to listen to the arguments of supporters of a ban on dog meat. According to a 2015 survey, 37 percent of South Koreans reported eating dog meat. This is significantly less than the data from previous years. In 2017, 70 percent of respondents claimed that they do not eat dogs. Moreover, among teenagers, the proportion of those who refused dog meat reached 80 percent.

Not all of those who have stopped considering dogs as a source of food consider it necessary to completely ban dog meat. Nevertheless, the sharp decline in interest in this aspect of national cuisine is really noticeable. This is explained primarily by the fact that Korea itself has changed. The dog has become a common pet in the country; Previously, due to traditions and living standards, dogs were rarely kept at home. This means that the psychological attitude towards eating their meat has changed. But most importantly, Korea has become an economic giant, widely integrated into the world economy; its youth, at least the educated part of it, consider themselves on the global agenda. She simply does not need to adhere to an extremely controversial culinary custom that causes confusion or, conversely, unhealthy interest among foreign interlocutors. Now the reluctance to kill dogs in order to eat them is not some stereotype imposed on them from the outside, but simply a normal part of the beliefs of an educated city dweller. In addition, the semi-legal status of dog meat also affects the characteristics of its sale in not very prestigious markets and in special restaurants. Which can also work as a limiter. One way or another, the owners of such restaurants themselves say that the demand for dog dishes is constantly decreasing. This turns into a specific treat for older people who are not ready to give up old habits.

Serious arguments can be found in defense of any controversial tradition. They can be sentimental or extremely rational. If such a tradition is criticized by an outsider, this causes an instinctive protest. And there is also a reason for such a protest: an outsider may turn out to be a hypocrite or simply not very smart. However, all this is not at all a reason to hold on to such bonds forever. Sometimes you can just become a little richer, look at the world a little more broadly, and you yourself will stop wanting to eat dogs. There are plenty of such “dogs” in every culture.

Almost every Westerner knows that they eat dogs in Korea. This is generally one of the main stereotypes associated with Koreans. Fewer people have heard that Koreans are afraid of cats. However, this knowledge about what role our familiar four-legged pets play in Korean culture is, as a rule, limited. Meanwhile, in reality, everything is somewhat more complicated: not every Korean dog is destined to end his life as a soup set, and cats are gradually turning from heroes of frightening legends and horror films into a status attribute of a successful and advanced person.

Not only food, but also a friend

In Korean national cuisine, there are indeed dog meat dishes. The most famous of them is posinthan. This name can be roughly translated as “longevity soup.” It is consumed mainly in the summer heat, and it is believed that this soup cures arthritis, sweating, impotence and other ailments. However, dog meat is by no means an everyday food, and idle talk about the fact that Koreans sell dog meat under the guise of pork looks almost like “they sold sturgeon, passing it off as pollock.” After all, a dog is a predator, and it must be fed with meat, which will take more to fatten than it will produce “healthy” meat at the end. So it is very much a seasonal food, partly used to attract exotic lovers.

There are several local dog breeds in Korea, and not all of them are food dogs. The most famous - Chindokke - looks like a short-haired husky or Japanese inu and is distinguished by its special intelligence and intelligence. Back in the 1990s, food dogs were actively sold in Korea at seasonal markets, and it was similar to how in our markets they sell chickens or piglets, which can be slaughtered right in the presence of the buyer.

Of course, the tradition of dog-eating causes cultural shock among Europeans, although in other food traditions eating frogs or consuming dairy products is no less disgusting. In addition, animal rights activists oppose the “barbaric tradition of slaughter,” and when the Olympics were to be held in Seoul in 1988, animal rights advocates forced the government to remove all taverns that served dog meat into the inner neighborhoods so that their signs would not be visible to foreigners. However, when in 2002, during the World Cup, fighters against posinthan began the campaign again, the Korean government responded differently: “This is our national tradition, we do not impose it on anyone or advertise it, but it is our right. Therefore, we will not take any action to limit posinthan.”

Nowadays, attitudes towards dogs (and, in fact, towards pets in general) are influenced not only by globalization, but also by urbanization. In a big city, the animal loses its traditional agricultural role, turning into a pet. In part, four-legged pets serve as a surrogate for children, in part - as a status symbol: since the average Korean apartment does not allow for keeping pets, either a wealthy person or a desperate fashionista can own pets.

These considerations also determine the choice of animals that Koreans keep. On the one hand, caring for a pet should not take much time, on the other, communication with it should be active. Large dogs require too much time and space, and birds and fish do not provide adequate communication. What remains are either decorative dogs or cats, whose lives in Korea will be discussed in more detail.

Scary and terrible

Cats appeared in Korea in the 11th-12th centuries, and since the 17th century they can be seen in traditional paintings, where they bask among flowers or watch birds. However, from at least the end of the 19th century until the beginning of this century, the cat evoked a mixture of disgust and superstitious horror among Koreans. There is a funny story about how a Korean prince visited an American mission where cats were kept to fight mice. When a kitten jumped into his lap, who was considered a reformer and generally a progressive person, the prince was so frightened that he fainted.

Korean fears

In traditional Korean culture, the fear of cats is one of the most common superstitions. Only the fear of the number “four” can compete with it (in Chinese, the word “four” is consonant with the word “to die”; from China, the superstitious horror of the “four” spread to Korea and Japan) and the belief that a fan that is not turned off at night slowly sucks the life out of a person.

There are still many superstitions associated with cats. For example, Koreans believe that on the last night of the old year, a terrible demonic cat looks for shoes left outside the threshold near houses. And if it finds them, then it does not do with the shoes what you thought - the infernal animal tries on the shoes, thereby changing for the worse the entire future fate of their owner. The tail of a cat that enters a house can be held by the spirit of the deceased, but it also happens that the cat itself can be possessed by the spirit of a murdered woman. The latter superstition, however, appeared under the influence of Japanese films about werecats, which were not shown in Korea until the 1990s as part of the fight against Japanese cultural expansion, but their plots were regularly remade in the Korean way. By the way, some Korean nationalists even explained to the author of these lines their dislike for cats as follows: “The most famous cat is the maneki-neko. Maneki-neko is a symbol of Japan. What good can come from the colonialists?”

Photo: Zuma / Panoramic / Global Look

It is mainly stray cats who suffer from this attitude, of which there are from 30 to 200 thousand in Seoul (depending on who is counting). They usually look intimidated and ragged. In addition, some doctors of traditional medicine consider cat meat to be a cure for joint pain, so in some seasonal markets they also sell cats, which are destined to become food. Often, compassionate Europeans save them from this fate. However, compared to posinthan, “cat tincture” is much less common, and animal advocates are actively debunking the myth of its usefulness.

The wind of change

Life for cats in Korea has only begun to change for the better in the last 10-15 years. This is due to the love for cats that has taken over the Internet, the popularity of anime “kawaii nekos,” and a certain increase in living standards, which reduces the need to take out aggression on stray animals. True, a dog is still considered a favorite pet, and only about one in 5,000 Koreans own a cat. Moreover, as a rule, this is an expensive purebred cat, a sign of status, the price of which can be twice as high as the European one.

Attitudes towards stray cats are also changing. They appear not only near Buddhist temples, as before, but also near some taverns, where they are fed by foreigners. Taking a stray cat home is considered bad manners, they say, it is his karma to live on the street. But there are also those who regularly feed such cats. The attitude towards these people in society is not very good: it is believed that only those who do not have friends and have not developed a career do this. Therefore, compassionate Koreans feed street cats in the dark.

I went to Korea for examination and treatment, but I decided to make an interesting trip out of the dull medical examination, and I succeeded. A complete examination, thanks to the first-class system of the Korean Severance clinic, took me only 5 hours instead of the usual month in Russia, so I devoted most of the tour to studying Korea.

And you know, it's really cool here. I stopped uploading photos to my Instagram (nemihail), but now I use it exclusively for video stories, which subscribers see immediately after I took them, and after a day they disappear forever, a very interesting format, so if you want to travel with me , then add yourself, there is still a video from this restaurant hanging there. Well, if you are more accustomed to the photo version, then everything can be quickly found on my Telegram channel (telegram.me/nemihail).

The tradition of eating dogs is gradually dying, today it is quite expensive and young people are not ready to overpay, so the visitors of such restaurants, with rare exceptions, are older people and tourists who are interested in trying everything.

This is quite an old and very famous restaurant in Seoul.

As in many traditional restaurants, people eat while sitting on the floor on special cushions, and the floor itself is well heated.

The finished dogs are butchered right in the common room in your presence.

The cost of a 200g serving is 25,000 KRW (Korean won or $25)

The finished meat is steamed on a special burner with a small gas cylinder.

Almost any national restaurant serves Panchhan snacks. The minimum composition of panchhan is kimchi (cabbage).

And radish.

The most delicious meat of a dog is on the ribs. The cut meat is placed on an onion bed and partially covered with onions.

While the main dish is steaming, dog meat soup is served on the table. Like many Korean soups, it is very tasty, but somehow I couldn’t pick out anything special about the dog in it.

Rice must be served with the soup. Koreans use it like we use bread.

The meat is served with a special sauce made with sesame oil.

The contents of this plate should be mixed well, the meat should be rolled in this sauce and wrapped in onions. This is how Koreans eat meat.

Local vodka is also very popular among ordinary Koreans; it is not very strong and costs only $1. Vodka is almost always advertised by young Korean women.

Well, and most importantly, dog meat is very tasty, to my taste it resembles lamb meat, I would even say that it is more tender and tastier than lamb meat and there is no obsessive lamb smell. So if you have the opportunity, don't deny yourself the pleasure.

Would you eat dog?

One of the non-sports leitmotifs of the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang was the struggle of animal rights activists and all those who sympathize with animals against the old Korean tradition of eating dog meat.

It all started with the fact that the bronze medalist of the team race Dutch speed skater Jan Blokhuysen at a press conference either out of annoyance that he had to settle for third place, or out of real concern, he accused the Koreans of treating dogs poorly. “Please treat dogs better in this country,” advised Blokhuysen. The Koreans, who from time to time throw a stone into their garden, did not really like the athlete’s attack, so they staged a flash mob on social networks in which they accused the Europeans of interfering in the internal affairs of the country. As a result, the head of the Dutch sports delegation apologized: “I am forced to raise the issue of the incident that occurred at the press conference. On behalf of our entire delegation, I formally apologize for the athlete’s remarks.”

Soon, rumors appeared in the media that dog meat is sold in Korea on every corner and even in the Olympic village, and in public catering every now and then they strive to replace chicken or beef meat (chickens and cows are not so actively sympathized with at the Games) with dog meat. Animal rights activists, who had previously disliked cruel Asian traditions, quickly joined the conflict and took to the streets with slogans: “A dog is your friend or your food,” and photo and video footage of dogs being killed on Korean farms. They had previously signed a petition calling for a boycott of the Olympics in a country where they eat pets.

“South Korea is the 14th largest economy in the world, but in this country 2.5 million dogs and thousands of cats are slaughtered every year. This is called "healthy eating." Animals are forced to endure hardships and unimaginable torments from the moment they are born until the day they are killed. And South Koreans truly believe that the more a dog suffers, the more it will enrich the quality of the meat and increase the health benefits for the consumer. If South Korea wants to be respected as a nation of conscience, then South Koreans should strengthen their animal welfare laws and permanently ban the consumption of dog and cat meat,” the petition said.

Some Olympians joined the animal rights movement and decided to independently rescue the dogs that Koreans let into the “longevity soup.” For example, a gold medal winner Canadian figure skater Megan Duhamel will take home with her a dog that she bought from a dog meat farm. The girl named the puppy Mu-tai and wrote on social networks that he loves to sit in her arms. Now Duhamel encourages all athletes to follow her example. Coach Duhamel was surprised where the athlete found the dog, because there are no such farms near the Olympic Village, and no dogs were seen.

WHY DO THEY EAT DOGS IN KOREA?

Eating dog meat in Asian countries is an old tradition; only in China dog meat has been used as food since 500 BC. They ate dog meat in ancient times not only in Asia, but, for example, in Mexico. As for Korea, initially dogs were not perceived there as “friends of man,” but were raised as livestock. Today, nothing has changed in this regard; dogs, like cats, are not pets. According to Koreans, the difference between livestock and pet is subjective.

There is absolutely no religious or mythological explanation in the tradition of eating dogs, he told a MIR 24 correspondent. Candidate of Historical Sciences, Head of the Korean Sector of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Alexander Vorontsov. According to him, Koreans, like other Asians, eat dog meat because they believe it is healthy.

“This is a national tradition. Why do some people eat pork and others don't? In the eyes of Muslims, we can all also look blasphemous. Why do you need to go with your charter to someone else’s monastery? This is an ancient tradition that was born long before the advent of Europe, and in China already at that time there was a highly developed civilization and a whole class of highly educated people. It is good for health, they say. Many people consume various animals to maintain a healthy body. There is no religious or mythical explanation. Koreans prefer to eat specially farmed dog breeds, but that doesn't mean a pooch can't get into the pot. Many people talk about the cruel way of killing dogs, but why don't lethal injections be given to cows, pigs and chickens? Probably, the Dutch would also be indignant if they were told that their national mills were already tired,” said the historian.

Asians believe that dog meat increases potency and cures tuberculosis, which affects, for example, many rice harvesters who spend most of their time working in water. Such explanations allow Koreans to maintain dog markets, which horrify tourists and all those who are not close to this part of Asian culture. Dogs are kept there, really, like cattle. In cramped cages there are 20-30 animals sitting on top of each other. They are slaughtered right in front of the customers. Today in South Korea there are more than 17 thousand industrial dog farms and 2-2.5 million dogs are slaughtered every year.

But even such conditions of life and death for dogs are the result of the struggle of animal rights activists, including world-famous stars. Literally 10 years ago, dogs were slaughtered right on the streets, and not in a specially designated place.

The fact that Koreans, like other Asians, will give up dog meat in the near future is unlikely, Korean scholars believe. Today, dog meat is a holiday food that is not included in the daily diet, he said Candidate of Historical Sciences at the Institute of Asian and African Countries of Lomonosov Moscow State University Konstantin Asmolov.

“Koreans have long responded to these accusations like this: “. Nothing can be done about it." If during the 1988 Olympics, when the Koreans were more dependent on external opinion, they renamed dog soup "longevity soup" and removed such restaurants from the streets, placing them inside alleys rather than on main streets, but now the Korean position boils down to the following: “We don’t force anyone, we don’t do anything with particular cruelty, we don’t include this food as mandatory. “Whoever wants to be offended, let him be offended, but we are not going to look back at anyone.”

For a number of reasons, the tradition of eating dogs is associated specifically with Korea. Everyone knows that Koreans eat dogs. But a dog is food for festive occasions. All kinds of talk that the Koreans will sell you dog meat under the guise of pork is the same as assuming that they will cook you sturgeon and pass it off as pollock. Dog meat is not an everyday food - it is an elite food for special occasions. But this meat is not very expensive,” Asmolov said.

At the same time, the expert notes that today they eat less dogs in Korea, and the topic itself often becomes a litmus test for the media and the public. Korean society is not aggressive about discussing this problem. We're used to it.

“All these things are connected with the fact that, firstly, a more Europeanized generation has appeared, for whom a dog is not food, but an object for “usi-pusi,” and secondly, a generation has passed away that remembers what it’s like to live in the village and slaughter livestock there ourselves. Young people are accustomed to the fact that sausage is miraculously produced in their refrigerator. Moreover, since Korean public opinion is not very aggressive in this direction, this is a good way to score points on a topic that you can raise without significant risk. That is why this scandal is not really a scandal. On the one hand, animal rights activists have something to worry about, but on the other hand, have you seen many demonstrations for the rights of French frogs? Please note that in relation to China or Korea, animal rights activists are foaming, and for some reason they forget about other countries where dogs are also eaten,” Asmolov noted.

Bans on killing dogs have been introduced in the Philippines, Singapore and Hong Kong, but experts say the ban has not been implemented in practice. Dogs have been killed and are still being killed. But there is room for socio-political maneuver and the operation of black markets, of which there are quite a few, and their activities can no longer be regulated. In Vietnam, even more dogs are killed than in Korea - about five million a year, and even stolen dogs are often used for meat there. The level of dog consumption has continued in Cambodia.

HOW THE DEATH OF DOGS CELEBRATE IN CHINA

When experts talk about the lack of ritual in eating dog meat, they still miss one important event that takes place in China. Every year in the city of Yulin, from June 21 to June 30, the summer solstice is celebrated, the most important tradition of which is eating dog meat. In 10 days, city residents slaughter about 10-15 thousand dogs, believing that they are driving away the heat of the summer months.

In June 2015, a petition was prepared in the UK demanding that the festival be banned; the initiative collected three million signatures. The Chinese government even met the public halfway and banned the bloody holiday. However, this led to citizens accusing the state of aiding European influence in the country. The government quickly abandoned the ban, arguing that the Yulin festival was too old a national tradition and that dogs were killed humanely these days. However, footage that appears online from time to time from the Yulin festival suggests otherwise. Joyful Chinese sit at tables and watch dogs being killed.

Do Koreans eat dogs? This question worries animal activists and travelers who travel to Asian countries. For Koreans, dog meat is a festive dish that is consumed only on special occasions. Tourists do not have to worry that instead of pork they will be given the meat of a four-legged friend. For Asians, this is a national, traditional dish, which they are unlikely to give up to please the West. Before you get to know Korean cuisine, you need to understand what breeds of dogs are used for this purpose, why and why they are eaten at all, and where this tradition originated.

Do they eat dogs in South Korea?

In South Korea, a separate culinary trend has emerged related to eating and cooking dog meat. In one year, Koreans eat almost 10 thousand tons of this dish. In terms of popularity, the meat of the four-legged friend ranks 4th in the country.

Now in South Korea there is controversy over such taste preferences. The younger generation, raised on European traditions, is against eating the meat of four-legged friends. Adherents of the idea do not understand why dog ​​meat cannot be eaten, while dishes made from rabbit, beef, and chicken are eaten all over the world.

Due to political discussions, in 2005 South Korea passed a law banning the slaughter of dogs in public places. At the same time, cooking and eating them is not prohibited. Koreans themselves note that they would never cook pets. For culinary purposes, only animals specially raised for this purpose are used. Those who resort to public slaughter are subject to an administrative fine of up to $2,000 or six months in forced labor camps. Previously, such measures were not provided. It is also prohibited to kill four-legged animals by strangulation.

What do Koreans cook?

The most popular dog food is posinthan soup. It is often called the dish of immortality. The meat is boiled together with pieces of green onion, dandelion and perilla feathers. Koreans say that this soup has a beneficial effect on the body, rejuvenates the body and prolongs life. And in men it also has a positive effect on potency. But Asians, when luring tourists to their restaurants, say this about almost every dish.

In addition to the famous dog meat soup, restaurants serve dishes with sweet and sour sauce. One of the popular dishes among locals is dog paws with garlic sauce. European tourists who decide to try this food say that dog meat is something between pork and beef, but with stronger nuances of taste.

Is it true that they eat dogs in North Korea now? It is unknown. This is a closed country where there is not even the Internet, so it is difficult to find reliable information. What is known is that some restaurants in North Korea serve dog meat dishes on special orders and for a lot of money.

Why do Koreans eat dogs?

In Korea, cooking and eating dog meat dishes is an old tradition. Even in China, this meat was used as food in the 500s BC. Moreover, in ancient times, four-legged animals were eaten even in Mexico. In Korea, eating dog meat became a tradition due to the fact that at that time animals were not perceived as human friends. For the Aborigines, this meat is the same as pig meat for Europeans. Dogs and cats that later become food are rarely kept as pets; they are initially raised for slaughter in special farms.

Asians eat dog meat only because they believe in its beneficial properties. For them, such food is not only a way to increase potency, but also to cure tuberculosis. It affects rice harvesters who are forced to spend a lot of time in water. This is how Koreans explain the maintenance of dog markets and farms. Animals are kept in cramped cages of several dozen. Previously, about 2-3 million animals were slaughtered per year. Before the law was passed that prohibits the slaughter of dogs in public places, they were slaughtered right in front of buyers. Even this change is the result of the activities of animal rights activists.

Korean scholars believe that even though the generation raised in European traditions refuses to eat four-legged friends, no one is going to completely abolish these dishes. Koreans do not eat such food every day, only on holidays, grandiose and significant events.

During the 1988 Olympics in Korea, restaurants that served dog meat were moved from the city's central streets to remote ones. Back then, the Koreans depended on the opinions of the rest of the world, and did so only to avoid international condemnation and conflict. Now the political elite of South Korea reacts calmly to the culinary preferences of the aborigines, arguing that this is a national tradition with which it is difficult to do anything.

Due to such sluggish reactions to attempts to create a global conflict, young people assert themselves in society. No one is punished for speaking out about eating dogs. That is why the topic is called a scandal only nominally.

Animal rights activists around the world treat the Chinese and Koreans especially aggressively, and they forget about other countries. The Philippines, Singapore and Hong Kong have banned the killing of dogs, but this has only led to the emergence of black markets. In Vietnam, more than 5 million animals are slaughtered per year, which is twice as much as in Korea. However, they are rarely raised there on special farms; they are often stolen pets.