The magistrate court has given a jail sentence to two senior citizens after they were convicted of abusing a dog two years ago. The two men were identified as Wong Then Yoong, 67, and Aw Soon Fatt, 66.
The duo was charged under Section 44 (1) (d) of the Animals Act 1953 after they dragged the chained dog for a distance of 2.3 kilometres along Jalan Batu Sinar in Bandar Baru Kampar on November 11, 2016.
The dog suffered immensely at the hands of the unemployed men, who were dependent on their children.
During the hearing, the counsel representing the duo said that the men were ashamed of their act. He said that they were about to abandon the dog and didn't intend to kill it. He also said that due to age and health, just levying fine is appropriate.
On the other hand, deputy public prosecutor requested a heavy sentence so that no one dares to repeat the act.
This is not the first time that Wong and Aw were charged. In 2016, the duo was sentenced to a month in jail and fined RM200 by the Magistrate's Court.
In Malaysia, Muslim clerics often cite Islamic scriptures to state that dogs are unclean and they should be kept out of man's touch. When an animal lover tried to launch a campaign three years ago on Facebook under the title "I want to touch a dog', he faced more than 3,000 threats from across the country.
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