Target: Li Qiang, Premier of the People’s Republic of China, Beijing, China
Goal: Fully investigate the release of over 1,000 cats into a reservoir, hold all responsible parties accountable, and adopt strict national rules to prevent cruel “life release” events.
Reports from Guangdong Province describe a so-called “life release” ritual in which organizers transported roughly 1,100 cats to a reservoir and released them all at once. Video shared online shows trucks stacked with cages, doors opening, and frightened cats spilling into an unnatural environment where many panicked, fled into the trees, or jumped into deep water. Onlookers and paddleboarders tried to pull flailing cats from the reservoir, but some animals drowned before help could reach them.
Animal-protection volunteers later described cats in shock and fear, with a number already dead. Questions quickly emerged about where such a large number of cats had come from in the first place, and outraged citizens online have suggested that at least some animals may have been stolen from streets or homes, though this has not been confirmed. In spite of the chaos and fatalities, local authorities have stated that the organizers’ “intentions were not criminal” and that there was “no evidence of wrongdoing,” further fuelling public anger and mistrust.
This incident exposes a dangerous loophole: cruel or reckless mass “life release” events can still be justified as religious or cultural practice, even when animals are placed into obvious danger. Without clear national standards, traceability requirements for animals used in such rituals, and meaningful penalties when harm occurs, similar tragedies may continue. This petition urges the central government to support a thorough investigation into the Ying Zui Reservoir incident, to hold any offenders fully accountable under existing law, and to introduce strict, enforceable rules that prohibit life-release practices which predictably cause suffering, injury, or death to animals.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Premier Li,
Reports from Guangdong Province about a recent “life release” gathering near the Ying Zui Reservoir have deeply disturbed many people in China and around the world. Organizers trucked in approximately 1,100 cats, opened their cages at the reservoir’s edge, and then left the animals to fend for themselves. Stunned cats scattered in panic, some leaping into deep water and drowning while nearby paddleboarders and volunteers tried to pull them out.
Subsequent accounts from animal-protection volunteers indicate that many cats were terrified, in shock, and in some cases already dead. At the same time, members of the public have raised serious questions about the cats’ origins, fearing that at least some animals may have been taken from streets or homes solely to be used in this ritual, though this has yet to be formally established. In spite of these concerns, local authorities have characterized the organizers’ intentions as non-criminal and stated that there is “no evidence of wrongdoing,” a position that has intensified public outrage and eroded confidence in existing protections.
We respectfully urge your office to support a full, transparent investigation into this event. That process should identify and hold accountable everyone involved in any illegal capture, transport, or reckless release of these cats, and should examine whether existing laws against cruelty, illegal trade, or public-order violations apply. Beyond this single case, we ask that you direct the relevant ministries to develop and enforce clear national rules on so-called “life release” ceremonies: requiring traceable, lawful sourcing of animals; banning releases into environments where the species cannot survive; and imposing meaningful penalties whenever animals are predictably subjected to suffering, injury, or death in the name of tradition.
Cruelty to animals does not honor any genuine spiritual value; it only normalizes disregard for life. By ensuring justice in this reported mass release of cats and by closing the legal and regulatory gaps that allowed it to occur, your government can send a powerful message that compassion and cultural practice must go hand in hand, and that needless animal suffering will not be tolerated.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Courtney Bayliss
