Compassion in World Farming, the animal welfare organisation, will take its protest against the live export of animals to Belfast later today when it pickets Belfast port.
The group said it was organising a peaceful protest to ban live exports at the Harbour Office, Port of Belfast, Corporation Square, Belfast at 10.30 a.m. today because it wants no further shipments of live farm animals to leave from Belfast port.
It said Belfast had become the first UK port to be used for shipments of live sheep to the Continent after the lifting of foot-and-mouth disease restrictions. Already, two shipments have left with sheep originating from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
"The last consignment of animals to leave Belfast port on February 12th, 2002, consisted of 274 sheep which originated in the Republic of Ireland. They were first sent on a four-day sea journey to Le Treport in France," it said.
"Having got there, French officials would not allow the sheep to be unloaded from the Khalifeh-1 livestock boat, apparently due to an error on the paperwork.
"As a result the sheep were left on the boat for 12 days before recently being returned to the Republic of Ireland for slaughter," it said.
"We are calling on the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development not to allow the return of the Khalifeh-1 or any other livestock boat into a Northern Ireland port", the statement continued.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development in Dublin confirmed that the sheep, which it purchased when the French authorities would not allow them in, had been returned, checked and then slaughtered.
"They were checked to make sure there were no diseases or welfare problems and none were found and they were slaughtered," said the spokesman.