Conspiracy at FCI on Hongkong-memberschip
Can the Kennel Club of Hong Kong remain a member of the FCI or not, and is the China Kennel Union legitimately admitted as a member of the FCI?
That dilemma awaits the General Assembly of the FCI next week in Leipzig. Following the "critical proposal" (basically a gag order for all FCI affiliated kennel clubs) again a very controversial item on the agenda of the General Assembly of the world's leading cynological organisation.
What is going on? Two unexpected countries have submitted a proposal to the FCI to remove Hong Kong as a member of the FCI. These are Latvia (the LKF chaired by Vija Klučniece) and Moldova (the UCM led by Sergei Volinet). Both countries are relatively new FCI members, mainly because they both come from regions that were previously under the government of the Soviet Union. The reason given by both countries to put Hong Kong out of the FCI is simple. According to the statutes, only one kennel club per country may be a member of the FCI. And Hong Kong has been part of China since July 1, 1997 when it gave up the status of British protectorate. So far, nothing seems wrong with the proposal, because according to the statutes, both Hongkong (HKKC) and China (CKU) would not be allowed.
Strictly according to the rules, China should never have become a member
The fact that the proposal comes from these two countries is of course remarkable. In response to both proposals, Hong Kong chairlady (chairman of HKKC) Cindy Lee has already said she is surprised that neither of these kennel clubs ever contacted Hong Kong. Perhaps not very strange, because in any case, Volinet is particularly charmed by the opponent of the HKKC, the CKU, and posts very regularly favourable reports of the shows in China where he serves as an (all-round) judge. And attends nice dinners with the CKU board members. Less is known about Mrs. Klucniece, even though she was the cause of a riot last year, for which she removed 11 dogs from her ring for unclear reasons during a show in Slovakia, ultimately resulting in a violent incident where organizer Javcorcik struck a female exhibitor. Mind - Mrs. Klucniece is eligible in the upcoming elections of FCI General Committee members in Leipzig!
However, according to Hong Kong, the actions of these National Kennel clubs are not even the most important thing, it is the very dubious role of judge Franki Leung, which is likely to have instigated the removal of Hong Kong from the FCI ranks. Or, as Hong Kong writes, a proposal with "Malicious intent to revenge HKKC on the issue of the judging status of Franki Leung".
A brief view into historic events : The Hong Kong Kennel Club was founded in 1947, and joined the FCI in 1972. In 2011, Hong Kong became a full member, coincidentally in the same year that the China Kennel Union became an associate member during the Paris meeting. In 2013, the CKU became a full member. Especially that event in 2011 was widely announced by the CKU And it was here that Franki Leung, still attached to the HKKC, expressed his support for China. Or as the CKU reports, "The delegate from Hong Kong comments after that. He says Hong Kong and mainland China is a whole. Although Hong Kong joined FCI earlier than CKU, he believes that it will bring better opportunities for both. He asks the delegates to vote for CKU as well. "
Behind the scenes, however, the undercurrent was gaining momentum. On behalf of the HKKC, Leung signs a striking agreement, posing as the chairman of the HKKC, a function that Leung never fulfilled within the HKKC. An action in which he in principle disqualifies his own Kennel Association, the HKKC, in favour of China’s CKU, to give the CKU the sole right to all that is happening in China in cynological affairs. "Hong Kong accepts to restrict its cynological activities within Hong Kong only," the document states. In addition, the document already takes the lead in China's accession as a full member, as the HKKC could no longer vote against the full CKU membership. And, essentially, the sentence "The FCI, the Japan Kennel Club, the Asian and Pacific section and the HongKong Kennel Club will unanimously agree that the China Kennel Union will be the only canine organization that represents China (...) in the future, is in fact, the death sentence for the HKKC.
Due to this, but also for other reasons, Leung was suspended as a judge by the HKKC. Normally, the FCI supports such suspensions and announces this "FCI wide" so that they are upheld by all countries that are affiliated to the FCI. It was therefore "special" that Leung, who still lives in Hong Kong, received a transfer as a judge to the CKU within one year. With the support of the FCI, the HKKC was even never consulted on this statement at all. The HKKC sent several letters to the FCI, but never received any answer. When Dogzine asked the FCI for a further statement, the Director of the FCI reported that it was "internally handled" and that "the judging status of Mr. Leung was clarified long ago by an independent body specifically appointed for this task." Leung himself did not want to comment.
And so, says Hong Kong now, it is crystal clear that Moldova and Latvia made their proposal for suspension of Hong Kong under pressure of, or at least, at the request of "certain persons". (image). The HKKC even calls it a conspiracy. And so, Hong Kong will not be present at the General Assembly in protest against these procedures.
But there might be another bomb hiding under the grass, something the HKKC mentioned in the correspondence. Strictly according to the rules, China should never have become a member. After all, only one kennel club per country can be a member, and in 2011 that was, like it or not, Hong Kong. With the admission of China as an associate and later full member, the FCI General Assembly violated its own statutes. And a decision that goes against the statutes of any association is not valid or legal, it is VOID. Simply put, if you just check the statutes you have to conclude that China is not a member of the FCI at all, because such decisions are contrary to statutes mentioned, and so to be considered non-existent.
Remarkable detail regarding the 2019 World Dog Show is that the immensely wealthy CKU chairman Chen Jinfei, one of the richest Chinese industrialists, is not allowed to organize the World Dog Show in 2019 at all. That right is reserved exclusively to kennel clubs that are full members of the FCI. And it is this WDS that is critisised worldwide by doglovers, due to the cruel practices in China against dogs.
And so , an outsider could indeed conclude that the removal of the HKKC in favor of the CKU is a long-standing conspiracy of certain people in the higher regions of the FCI, with the aim of silencing a rather critical member in favour of a wealthy kennel club that is pampering judges and FCI board members with Gold Cards during the upcoming WDS 2019 in China.
Of course, the FCI has been asked for comments. At the time of writing we have not received an answer yet. Also Latvia and Moldavia have not reacted on requests for clarification Dogzine sent them.
In the link below you find all HKKC-documents on this issue.