Saarland: Hunting Lobbyism in the Animal Welfare Commissioner's Office

Saarland illustrates how inadequately animal welfare is handled politically in Germany:

On 12.10.2022, Dr. Arnold Ludes was elected by the Saarland state parliament as State Animal Welfare Commissioner despite strong criticism. The office is tasked with advising the state government and animal welfare authorities on legislation and on complaints and violations of animal welfare law, making proposals for improving animal welfare in Saarland, and serving as a point of contact for citizens and animal welfare organisations.

This election is highly problematic in many respects and contradicts the political responsibility we have towards animals as members of our society:

Lobbyism:

Mr. Ludes is not only a veterinarian but also a passionate hobby hunter. Statements by Mr. Ludes reveal that his understanding of animal welfare does not apply equally to all animals.

It also highlights how the important office of Animal Welfare Commissioner is being politically misinterpreted. The fact that a person has a great deal to do with animals does not in any way mean that this person acts in the interests of animals.

The fact that the new Animal Welfare Commissioner is closely connected to the hunting scene means that the office in Saarland will be blind to this issue. The office of Animal Welfare Commissioner should ensure genuine representation of animals. Animals are already barely represented politically. It cannot be the case that a person holds this office for whom putting a dog to sleep is touching and emotional, while killing a wild animal is accompanied by fascination with the organs of the freshly killed creature.

Faced with numerous problems in the field of animal welfare that should be placed on the agenda, Ludes chooses not to put animals at the forefront, but instead declares it his goal in his new role to eliminate the image of hunters as an enemy in society. Image management for people, rather than advocacy for animals, is his motto.

Mr. Ludes is also chairman of the committee for game meat marketing in the Association of Hunters of Saarland. His wife, Dr. Marion Ludes, is likewise a member and serves as commissioner for fair chase, animal welfare, trap hunting, and wildlife diseases. This represents a clear conflict of interest. An animal welfare commissioner should act exclusively in the interest of animals, not in the interest of hunters.

Mr. Ludes sees, for example, no fundamental problem with a planned earth dog facility in Neunkirchen, where hunting dogs are trained to hunt using foxes kept in captivity. He is familiar with such facilities involving wild boar and is of the opinion that the staged hunting situation causes no stress for the animals, but is rather amusing.

Criticism from animal welfare organizations was voiced even before his election. When asked about his plans for the role, he expressed a desire to bring everyone to the table in order to smooth things over. In plain terms, this means seeking to suppress legitimate criticism.

Furthermore, an additional conflict of interest is apparent, as Mr. Ludes worked for years in the Saarland Ministry of the Environment in the area of agriculture. Agriculture and animal welfare must be kept politically separate, since they represent opposing interests that need to be balanced objectively.

A biased election:

Arnold Ludes was moreover the only person who stood for election to the post. One can therefore hardly speak of a genuine election. All members of the Saarland state parliament present voted for the veterinarian and hunter. Yet long before the vote, it appeared to many that Mr. Ludes would become animal welfare commissioner.

Such an important office must not be decided upon in a manner that is almost undemocratic — by making the position so unattractive that there is only one applicant with a clearly identifiable personal interest in holding it.

The animal welfare commissioner role must not be an honorary position: 

Also problematic is the fact that the position in Saarland is merely an honorary office. This resulted in no other candidates applying for the position, as it is regarded as "a toothless tiger" .

Animals are constantly affected by political decisions. The protection of animals is enshrined as a state objective in the Basic Law. The fact that the upholding of this responsibility is to be carried out solely on a voluntary basis does not in any way do justice to its importance and significance.

Animal Society is therefore launching a petition for genuine representation of animal interests and the dismissal of Saarland's new animal welfare commissioner Dr. Arnold Ludes:

https://www.change.org/p/nein-zu-jagd-lobbyismus-im-amt-des-tierschutzbeauftragten