KARACHI: Around 100 snakes have been ruthlessly killed as part of a ‘magic show’ currently under way at the zoo, it emerged during a visit to the facility on Monday.

Titled ‘The snake-eating man’, the stunt has been attracting hundreds of visitors since the first day of Eid and is likely to continue for a few more days.

The snakes are killed by a performer who breaks their necks with his teeth before skinning them, and tasting their blood dripping from their mutilated bodies. This act is done in front of a large audience, majority of whom are children.

“I have been holding these shows in all major cities of the country for a long time. No government official has ever stopped or fined me on my acts,” said performer Talib, who hails from Nawabshah.

The 31-year-old performer, also a snake-hunter, gets the reptiles from Thatta and is of the opinion that the number of snakes has not declined over the years despite their frequent killing in his performances.

“I eat all kinds of snakes that include cobras and vipers but they are often not easily available,” he said.

According to him, he has developed immunity against snake poison and suffers no effects from a snake-bite.

He shared that he developed a “taste” for snakes in his childhood. “I was seven when a snake bit me and I reacted by punishing it the same way. Gradually, I developed a taste for snakes and, as I grew up, I thought of entertaining people with my act,” he said.

He added that he was also “fond of” frogs and lizards which he used in his performances if he could not get any snakes.

Asked if “eating different” makes him a different person, he replied: “I feel myself to be a bit more powerful than other men as I consume reptile blood.”

Cruelty to animals

Ironically, the zoo administration, which is supposed to work for and educate others about animal conservation, defended the show when contacted to comment on the snake stunt.

“The show is being held only for a few days and in no way damages the public image of the zoo,” said zoo director Fahim Khan, arguing that the facility housing wild animals had to arrange such shows for “public entertainment”.

Wildlife conservator Sindh Saeed Baloch, however, criticised the zoo administration for “showing cruelty to animals” and said that the facility was encouraging the public to destroy wildlife.

“It’s unfortunate. The zoo should have acted responsibly being a government department meant for promoting animal conservation,” he said, while stating that his department staff would visit the zoo in this regard.

According to Mr Baloch, the wildlife ordinance of 1972 neither awards protected status to species like snakes, lizards or frogs, nor covers the subject of cruelty to animals.

“But, we can take action on charges of destroying biodiversity and ecosystem,” he contended.

It is important to recall that experts have been demanding that the government enact the Sindh Wildlife Act 2010 for many years.

The act, an important piece of document meant to replace the outdated Sindh Wildlife Ordinance 1972, has been approved by the law department but is yet to be tabled in the assembly.

“The proposed law is the most comprehensive document on wildlife ever formulated in the country because it takes care of all international obligations on wildlife as well as local sensitivities on the subject.

“It actually broadens the definition of wildlife that was earlier restricted to wild animals only. Besides, it also takes into account the concerns over cruelty to animals,” said a former wildlife official.

Presently, he observed, there was no custodian of the forgotten law of 1890 — the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act — under which maltreatment of any domestic and captured animals was a punishable act.

Published in Dawn, July 12th, 2016