Glenys Oogjes (vegan) and Animals Australia: Creating a Kinder World for All, Part 2 of 2

“People think of Australia, and they think of kangaroos. It’s even on our coat of arms, so to speak. But we kill them, supposedly because they’re competing for forage with our sheep and cattle. And so, farmers are allowed to shoot them, and they can get permits to do that. A primary concern is the cruelty involved in the killing. They’re shot at night by people with high powered rifles.”

The mission of Animals Australia is to protect the lives of animal-people, not just in Australia, but around the globe. “We’ve provided that information (investigative videos) without any strings at all sending that out so that they can use it for their own lobbying. We’ve worked with Euro Group for Animals, a federation of groups in Europe, about a hundred groups that are working against long distance transport, both on land in Europe, from country to country, and also to so-called third countries, meaning outside of Europe. In a more long-term way, we are founding members of the World Federation for Animals. And that body is working with international institutions, particularly the United Nations, the World Organisation for Animal Health, and the World Health Organization, in order to press for animal welfare to be part and parcel of international positions and rules. So, for example, putting forward information about antimicrobial resistance in the farming industries, about pandemic concerns and about animal cruelty per se, into United Nations areas.”

For over 40 years, Glenys has devoted her life to animal-people advocacy. Recently, she received some much-deserved recognition when she was named the Victorian Senior Australian of the Year, 2024. “That is, to some extent it’s a personal award, but it really is an award for what Animals Australia has been able to do, and what the animal advocacy movement has been able to do in Australia.”