Wild species have no place in public parks

A MAN SURNAMED YIN, 34, released a cobra in Huxiang Park, Xiangtan, Central China's Hunan province, on Sunday. One day later, after the video he shared on a social media platform caught the attention of the police, Yin was summoned to the local police station and detained for five days for "disturbing public order". Legal Daily comments:

Although the police and the park's guards started looking for the poisonous snake immediately after verifying the authenticity of the video, they have not found it yet. And it is still not known how the man got the cobra in the first place.

In Buddhism, fangsheng or the release of animals, particularly birds and fish, into their natural environment demonstrates pity and respect for life. But people should make sure the animals can survive in the wild and won't cause harm to humans before releasing them. More importantly, the animals should be released into forests, lakes or rivers, not in parks.