Copyright 1995 Reuters Limited The Reuter European Community Report February 7, 1995, Tuesday, BC cycle LENGTH: 333 words HEADLINE: GREEK ABATTOIRS BARBARIC, RIGHTS GROUP SAYS DATELINE: BRUSSELS, Feb 7 BODY: Greek slaughterhouses use "barbaric and illegal" methods to kill animals, the Eurogroup for Animal Welfare said on Tuesday. In a gruesome video film it showed sheep, goats and pigs having their throats cut without being stunned while others were left to bleed to death after being stunned improperly. Under EU Directive EC/577/74 animals must be knocked senseless before being killed. Further protection for animals at the time of slaugher was provided by Directive EC/119/93. "Such cruelty is unacceptable anywhere in the European Union," David Wilkins, Eurogroup's director, said in a statement. The video film, jointly organised by the Hellenic Animal Welfare Society and Britain's Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, covered visits to five Greek abattoirs between November 1994 and January 1995. Eurogroup, which consists of animal welfare organisations in all EU member states, urged the Greek Minister of Agriculture, Georges Moraitis, and the European Commission to make sure that EU and Greek slaughter rules were enforced. Wilkins asked the EU to help fund a planned Eurogroup training programme for Greek slaughtermen. Wilkins added that the Greek government had failed to act following a critical report five years ago. "It is clear that the Greek authorities have neglected their responsibilities to enforce legal stunning...over several years," Wilkins said in a letter to EU farm commissioner Franz Fischler. In an unusually swift and public reaction to a welfare group, Fischler said it was up to member states to enforce EU animal welfare laws. "EU legislation on animal welfare is worthless if the industry does not respect it and the national authorities do not control its implementation," Fischler said in a statement. Failure to respect the rules will harm the public image of agriculture, he added. Fischler said EU officials may be sent to Greece to investigate if animal slaughter rules were being followed.