CNN: “This is one of those ‘Where are they now.’ stories. With all the human suffering in Japan a pair of tsunami-surviving dogs stood out.” [Video clip of dogs, audio of Japanese reporter]
“ ‘Is the dog dead?’ wondered the Fuji TV team that stumbled upon this scene, as the healthier dog seemed to stick by his injured buddy. Moments later proof of life” [Reporter speaking Japanese]
“Soon this video was rocketing around the web…” [show picture of JEARS logo]
“… and the bedraggled, but seemingly loyal dog became an iconic picture on the facebook page of the Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support.”
[Picture of a rescuer holding dog; Voice-over: Jears spokesperson]
[JEARS: “We actually tried to go and rescue these two dogs after hearing about them.”]
CNN: “Reporter: Isabella Gallaon-Aoki and others packed up a van and headed for the devastated Sendai area to see what they could do for the pets left behind in evacuations.Finding human survivors is hard enough, but imagine trying to track down a pair of dogs. They went at it like detectives, trying to find the building behind the dogs in the video. They ended up here.
[Video of Sendai city; Voice-over JEARS spokesperson]
[JEARS: “This is the school that we think is the elementary school that we saw on the background of the original footage we saw of the dogs in the video.”]
CNN: “No dogs, but that turned out to be good news, because animal rescuers believe this man…”
[picture of Kenn Sakurai’s Facebook Profile Picture]
“…animal rights supporter and dog food importer, Kenn Sakurai got his friend to get the dogs.” [Video of dogs]
[Picture of PETA person; Voice-over of PETA spokesperson]
[PETA: “He was able to get into the area with the help of two men on motorcycles.”
CNN: That’s Ashley Fruno, a member of PETA who’s also in Sendai …”
[Pan out picture to show Ashley Fruno naked with body parts written on her]
“…though she’s better known for drawing a crowd at PETA protests.”
“On his Facebook page Kenn Sakurai says that the injured one is in a vet clinic while the healthier one is in a nearby shelter, ‘but please know that those two are just the tip of the iceberg. There are more and we need help.’.”
Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue has raised over $100,000 - much of it due to man’s best friend acting like best friends to each other.”
Jeane Moos CNN
CNN was unable to reach Kenn Sakurai because of the rolling blackouts in Japan. They aired the story anyway - without his permission. Had they spoken to him, he would never have given them permission to show his photo or his Facebook Page.
Isabella Gallaon-Aoki of JEARS and Ashley Fruno of PETA obviously agreed to be on this public media. Mr. Sakurai has no affiliation with either of them. The CNN reporter completes his comment that there are so many more needing rescue and they need HELP! Not money – HELP
She ends the piece by telling us that JEARS has raised over $100,000 “much of it due to” this video.
How Kenn Sakurai became a fraud and a thief by this is beyond me. I am also outraged that CNN ran their “breaking news” then just let it spread out there with no apology for violating his privacy. But most appalling is how JEARS/PETA presented Mr. Sakurai’s statements as fact, then allowed him, his friends and his staff to take all the abuse when they had nothing more to gain from him. Although the piece was edited to look as if JEARS and PETA were separate sources, they are working side-by-side right now in Japan.
When does a small town, fellow animal rights/rescuer become your enemy? When you can divert his donations to your coffers.
