Standardize "pet blind boxes" and crack down on "blood business"
■ Editorial
The prohibition of illegal mailing of live animals not only restricts downstream express companies, but also activates legal accountability for upstream stores and e-commerce platforms.
On May 3, the illegal delivery of dogs, cats and other live animals at the Chengdu Hehuachi branch of Zhongtong Express was exposed by the media. Under the strong doubts of public opinion, the investigation, verification and handling of this incident proceeded rapidly.
ZTO Express responded quickly and apologized to the public.
On May 4, ZTO Express announced three rectification measures, including the suspension of the express delivery collection business at the outlets involved, suspension of the relevant person in charge for inspection, deduction of its annual performance bonus, and launch of special training.
The Chengdu postal supervision department has also stepped in to investigate the matter.
It is not the first time that illegal mailing of live objects has occurred in our country, and reports of related accidents have been common.
In the past two years, the rise of "blind pet boxes" has brought even greater challenges to the management of live mail.
In such incidents, it is certain that the courier company that received the parcel in violation of the regulations bears the corresponding responsibility, but the pet storefronts that sell and consign and related e-commerce platforms are also to blame.
Therefore, the treatment of live animal mailing from the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain should be the path of governance as it should be.
First of all, for shops selling pets, whether the live animals sent are subject to formal quarantine and whether they are vaccinated in accordance with regulations are related to public health safety.
Even if all of these are compliant, businesses that do not care about the life and death of pets do not conform to the moral bottom line that the pet industry should have.
In fact, some online pet shops that provide long-distance express delivery options try to win over customers on the condition of "death free return and exchange".
The subtext of "Death to sell" is really cold-blooded.
Now that the incident has been exposed, the store involved should not be allowed to leave.
For example, in accordance with the "Rules for the Implementation of the Postal Law of the People's Republic of China" and other laws and regulations, the administrative responsibility shall be investigated; if rare animals are involved and the number of casualties is large, the relevant personnel shall also be held criminally liable.
E-commerce platforms are also involved in such incidents.
Although it seems that e-commerce platforms are not directly responsible for the incident, they should also provide technical support to prevent such incidents from the perspective of the long-term benefits of purifying the industrial ecology.
Advanced big data technology should not only be used for accurate advertising, but should also be used to remind consumers and businesses of legal and compliant transactions.
This kind of live consignment incidents are mostly derived from online sales. In fact, from the perspective of platform supervision, it is not difficult to find such pet shops that illegally operate "remote business". E-commerce platforms should use technical means to perform platform audit responsibilities. , To prevent the business of illegal consignment of live things from spreading on the platform.
As for the last link of express delivery, the State Post Bureau has actually issued a clear notice to the entire industry in March 2020, "requiring the standardization of the delivery of live animals and severely cracking down on the illegal delivery of wild animals", that is, it is no longer required to prohibit the delivery of live objects across the board. .
However, the notice also made clear requirements: "For live animals that can be delivered, companies should require the sender to pack them safely and properly. In the process of transportation, sorting, and delivery, mail express mails with live animals inside should be effectively physically separated. , While ensuring the safety of the live animal mail express itself, avoid the contamination and damage of other mail express."
The competent authority has given out the policy principles for the delivery of live objects, and the relevant implementation standards and operating rules need to be refined by the relevant enterprises in cooperation with the competent authority.
But unfortunately, illegal live consignments are still popular.
How to further formulate and implement the implementation standards and rules as soon as possible and how to strengthen the review is an urgent task and a due responsibility for express delivery companies.
In summary, the phenomenon of illegal mailing of living things can be observed from the perspective of the industry chain. Not only downstream express companies, but upstream stores and e-commerce platforms must be included in the governance.
Move forward the measures to stop violations. While holding the courier companies accountable, the responsibilities of the merchants and platforms involved must also be clarified.
Only in this way can we start with local incidents and improve the entire industrial ecology.