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February 2 - The South African government is losing out on R1.5 billion a year in taxation that could go directly to its coffers, by not recognizing the need to legalize the greyhound racing industry. This is according to Amatwini Sport, a group that represents the greyhound breeding fraternity in the country and is a member of the prestigious United Greyhound Racing and Breeders Association.
Speaking for Amatwini, Shane Brody said that the high unemployment rate in South Africa could be brought down, thanks to a legalized greyhound racing industry, with the potential to create over 30,000 jobs.
Brody explained that South Africa could join other countries in the west where greyhound racing is not only legal, but also brings in billions of rand in tourist income, taxation and as a contributor to gross domestic product.
"Greyhound racing is big in the UK and US," explained Brody. "It's the second most watched sport after soccer, and the taxation of the sport would be beneficial to the country."
However, not everybody is keen to welcome legal greyhound racing into South Africa with open arms, among them a number of animal rights groups.
A representative for Earthlife Africa, Warwick Humphris, said: "These animals are just being used as a resource to make money. We are mostly concerned about the living conditions of these dogs because most of them don't receive proper care."
The National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals added: "South Africa is a developing country and cannot be compared to racing societies such as the UK. It can't be reasonably assumed that in future, we even get close to the levels of countries where dog racing has been developed for 80 years."
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