This file photo shows a stray cat resting under a car. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 19 (Korea Bizwire) — The nation’s civil rights watchdog on Monday advised local governments to proactively engage in resolving disputes surrounding protection facilities built for stray cats.
The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission advised local governments in a press release to “proactively engage in disputes between local residents over stray cat protection facilities set up in public spaces that may exacerbate through hostile acts against the facilities or concerns over sanitation.”
“Safety concerns over feeding stray cats in public spaces have been a major source of conflict that has appeared regularly in news reports, raising the need to come up with a solution. However, most local governments have been less than proactively engaged in these problems,” the commission said.
The commission introduced a case in which a local resident reported complaints to the local government about the inconvenience caused by stray cat homes, feeding grounds, and other protection facilities installed by other residents in local parks to no avail.
“Safety facilities for stray cats should be placed under the local government’s strict management to prevent any inconvenience towards other residents who dislike cats,” the commission said.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
