Although the channel downloaded the controversial episode from YouTube, today it uploaded it again, but deleted all the scenes where deer, shark, capybara and alligator are cooked.
Assemblywoman Viviana Veloz Ramírez, from the UNES bench, requested yesterday, January 5, 2022, in writing, to the State Attorney General’s Office to initiate “the investigations” that correspond to the “alleged crime against nature” that would have occurred in Chapter 34 of MasterChef Ecuador issued on January 3, 2022 by Teleamazonas.
“Faced with the public violation and violation of regulations that guarantee the rights of nature such as the Environmental and Criminal Code, we have proceeded to present the notitia crime (revelation of the commission of an allegedly criminal act) before the Prosecutor’s Office denouncing what happened in the MasterChef Ecuador program”Said the legislator, who is also a member of the Assembly’s Biodiversity Commission, on her Twitter account.
In that episode, the contestants were asked to cook meat from capybara, deer, shark and stifle (species of cayman). All are wild species and are in different categories of danger of extinction or there is not enough data to determine the risk of their population in both Ecuador and Colombia, in the latter country the program was recorded.
On Tuesday night, January 4, Teleamazonas removed the controversial episode 34 of the program from its YouTube account. However, today he uploaded it again, but he deleted all the scenes where the cooking of wild animals appears. In addition, he also deleted the tweets he had published in relation to prepared wild meats. So far the channel has not responded to the questions.
Meanwhile, members of the Fundación Proyecto Sacha went yesterday, January 5, 2022, to Teleamazonas, Guayaquil headquarters, and requested, in writing, two full copies of the controversial episode. The request is covered by article 28 of the Communication Law.
“(Cooking wild species) from our perspective as a foundation that works precisely for the conservation of wild fauna would constitute a serious impact on nature”, Indicates the official letter delivered by the foundation.
In the coffee-growing country there would be capybaras and crocodile farms for their consumption, but the origin of the meat must be demonstrated. Although for the tollo and the deer it is presumed that their use was illegal, said the Colombian Platform for Animals STOP!
Meanwhile, the Ministry of the Environment, Water and Ecological Transition of Ecuador also showed its rejection of the dissemination of this content because it encouraged “the purchase and consumption of wild species or their constituent elements.”
The fact has provoked questions from environmental organizations, animal rights, specialists, scientists and teachers in Ecuador and Colombia. They have asked that Teleamazonas and the producers of MasterChef make a public clarification on the use of bushmeat in Ecuador and on the origin of the meat that was used.
The criminal punishment in Ecuador, where the hunting and consumption of wild species is prohibited except for the survival of indigenous peoples, is under debate, since if there was a crime, it would be in Colombia.
However, Tarsicio Granizo, current director of the WWF-Ecuador organization and former Minister of the Environment, indicated that the use of wildlife in the MasterChef program violated articles 35, 70, 317 and 318 of the Environmental Organic Code: “Add to that the fact that some species are listed as endangered. And add the biosecurity factors ”.
In addition, he pointed out that it would not matter if the program is recorded in Colombia, since the problem is the message: “The hunting, commercialization and consumption of bushmeat are prohibited in Ecuador except if it is for the survival of indigenous peoples and nationalities.” (I)
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
