Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has accused the Czech Republic of violating the rights of his racehorses by ruling that any prize money they win could be used only for their animals' upkeep. Anything in excess would be frozen under European sanctions against Russian officials over the Ukraine crisis.
“What can we say about human rights in the West, if they crudely violate the rights of horses, the most peaceful, kind and gentle animals in the world?” Kadyrov said on his Facebook page Tuesday.
He was responding to an announcement by the Czech Finance Ministry stating that Kadyrov's horse racing stable in the European nation can use the prize money from wins in horse races to continue its operation, but anything in excess would be frozen. The ministry made the statement Monday, the Prague Post reported.
Kadyrov, who was outraged at the ruling, said that the horses themselves should be indignant, and speculated what the famed horse of antiquity, Bucephalus, the celebrated ride of Ancient Greek king Alexander the Great would have had to say about the matter.
“If Bucephalus had heard about this, even a thousand years later he would have been so surprised that he would have rolled over in his grave,” Kadyrov said. “And Alexander of Macedonia would have declared a war to restore horses' rights.”
“But war is not our way,” Kadyrov added, saying that his racehorses would somehow find their own way to rein in “frisky ministers.” He did not elaborate on what kind of horse retaliation Czech government ministers should expect.
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