Fur flies over wearing of skins in Chinese Year of Rabbit (Feature)

By Hazel Parry Feb 2, 2011, 4:32 GMT

Hong Kong - In Hong Kong, models in bikinis and bunny ears have paraded around with signs saying: 'Make it a year for rabbits. Don't wear fur.' Around Asia, posters have gone up showing a woman's foot stepping on the neck of a dead rabbit.

With the Chinese Year of the Rabbit starting Thursday, the fur industry is under attack from campaigners seeking to draw attention to the alleged cruelty of fur farms and appeal to Asian women to take fur out of their wardrobe.

But the Hong Kong Fur Federation, which represents some of Asia's biggest fur traders, has hit back, accusing protesters of peddling misinformation and 'bashing China' through their campaigns.

Actresses Gong Li and Michele Reis have been criticized for wearing fur, as part of the traders' region-wide campaign, by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) which says it fears wearing rabbit fur will increase this year.

'We have done investigations into the rabbit fur industry in China and there are many farms that could be gearing up for the Chinese New Year,' PETA spokeswoman Ashley Fruno said.

'We want people to know that if you care about animals or want to make it a good year for rabbits, please don't buy any fur. The manner in which they are killed is anything but humane.'

A letter to Michele Reis from PETA campaigner Coco Yu says: 'By flaunting any fur, you are as guilty of cruelty as if you had skinned the animals yourself.'

Rabbit fur is widely available in Asia, usually as a cheaper form of fur used on everything from coats to scarfs and hats and even toys for cats and dogs.

'It is just a matter of educating people and letting them know that rabbit before he became your cuff or collar was terrified and he was tortured and killed in an absolutely brutal way,' Fruno said, referring to conditions in Chinese fur farms.

PETA claims its investigations into the farms had found rabbit pulled from their cages by the ears and shot in the head with stun guns and rabbits hung upside down and decapitated.

However, Hong Kong Fur Federation spokesman Tim Everest said: 'Rabbit is a very popular and economic component fur type and features strongly in many ready-to-wear lines as well as in street fashion.

'Rabbit is very versatile and easy to work with which makes it popular with 'fashionistas' around the world.

'It really is hard to find a designer who does not use fur - those that have turned their back on fur have turned their backs on a powerful income stream in really tough economic times.'

'PETA's emotional campaigns are misleading and wrong,' he said.

Dressing actors as bunny rabbits was just PETA's way to attract attention and divert attention from inconsistent arguments, Everest added.

'Animals are not bludgeoned to death and animals are not skinned alive. That would be horrifically and unacceptably cruel but also an extremely difficult way to remove a pelt, both dangerous to the operator and damaging to the fur and leather quality of the skin itself.'

He accused the campaigners of 'bashing China at every opportunity' and said their resources would be better spent giving farmers guidance and education on farming methods and animal welfare.

'Their own human existence, by our standards, is pretty grim,' Everest said. 'Their basic need for survival takes precedence over many things and many of the farmers simply do not know any better.

'They need help and guidance, not a ban on the legitimate trade in trade on which their lives depend.'

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