Nepal temple begins mass slaughter of animals

By Gopal Sharma

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Priests at a Hindu temple in Nepal began sacrificing some 200,000 animals and birds on Tuesday in an ancient ritual to appease gods that was condemned by animal rights activists as the single largest mass slaughter of animals on earth.

Organisers estimate more than 200,000 buffaloes, goats, roosters and pigeons would be sacrificed during the festival attended by thousands of devotees at the Gadhimai temple in Bariyapur village in southern Nepal.

"This is a festival about animal sacrifice to goddess Gadhimai", Mangal Chaudhary, chief priest of the temple, told Reuters from Bariyapur.

"Tens of thousands of goats and buffaloes have already been brought by the devotees for the sacrifice. More are still coming despite protests."

Hindus in Nepal are known to offer animal sacrifices to deities for luck and prosperity or to ward off evil.

The festival, held every five years, has been criticized by activists who called for an end to the centuries-old ceremony.

French actress Brigitte Bardot in a letter to Nepal's President Ram Baran Yadav recently urged him to stop the ritual, a request the authorities turned down.

"We want to change the people's mindset peacefully...It is educating the people," said Pramada Shah, chief of the Animal Nepal campaign group.

"Those who love and care for animals are speaking out for the voiceless," she said.