Very sadly, the content of the 8hours.eu website has been removed, so all the links to 8hours pages that were present in articles published on the AWAT website are now re-directed to this page.
Partial count of signatures on the 8hours petition - Frankfurt, Germany, 2012
It is hard to understand why anyone would have wanted to erase the documentation of such a massive mobilisation to end the suffering of millions of animals in long-distance transport. That documentation included: a report on the 1,103,248 signatures handed in to the European Commissioner for Health in June 2012; the statements of support of many Members of the European Parliament (MEPs); the names of over 140 MEPs who expressed support for the campaign, and the photos of many of them holding the 8hours poster; the text and list of signatories of the Written Declaration adopted by the European Parliament in March 2012; the photos and statements of support of celebrities, and much more.
The World Wide Web is a powerful tool for providing open access to important information that belongs in the public domain. Since the Internet is an electronic medium, however, it is all too easy to remove information if it subsequently becomes a source of embarrassment. Many thousands of words – records of years of hard work undertaken by countless people – can be deleted with a few strokes of the keyboard.
In order to preserve at least part of the memory of the largest campaign ever against long-distance transport – for the establishment of a maximum 8-hour journey limit for animals transported in the European Union for the purpose of being slaughtered – below you will find a list of links to articles and web pages where you can find information on the 8hours campaign:
What happened with the 8hours campaign?
One million signatures against long-distance transport
European Parliament adopts 8hours Written Declaration
New publication on live animal transport
Commissioner Dalli receives 1,103,248 8hours signatures
European action targets Commissioner Dalli
EU Council against animal welfare and EU citizens
Conference ‘Animal suffering in long-distance transport: ask John Dalli’
Open letter to Maltese electors and conference announcement
European Parliament demands 8-hour limit
Animals’ Angels: pretending 8hours never existed
Other articles on the 8hours campaign can be found in the Archive section of this website.
