A Union Zoophila petition with more than 90,000 signatures defending the criminalization of animal abuse it will be delivered on Wednesday in the Assembly of the Republic, he said this Monday in a statement to UZ.
To be discussed in parliament, a petition needs a minimum of 7,500 signatures, so the organizing committee of the petition refers to having “the certainty” that it “will be discussed very soon” in the Assembly of the Republic, ” giving rise to the presentation of draft legislation in these matters”.
The petition gathered 12,000 signatures in just 36 hours. and more than 90,000 in just one month, according to the statement.
The petitioners appeal to the Constitutional Court to promote an ethical and updated interpretation of our fundamental law, including the protection of animals, and to the Assembly of the Republic to extend penal protection to sentient animals, not only to animals of company, to improve current regulations and which includes the express reference to animals in the text of the Constitution”.
The citizens’ request arises after the Constitutional Court declared the unconstitutionality of the current law three times. The question of the unconstitutionality of the norm that classifies with a fine or imprisonment who, without legitimate reason, kills or mistreats companion animals is analyzed again at the request of the Public Ministry.
The subscribers to the request declare themselves in breach of the “inertia of the powers that be”, advancing in the understanding that “whoever mistreats must be punished”.
According to the statement, in addition to the petition, “a document will also be delivered to the Assembly of the Republic and Parliamentary Groups. manifestwhere more than 40 prominent personalities in the field of law in Portugal and more than 50 associations and movements, demand the maintenance of criminal protection that protects companion animals, guaranteeing the effective “construction of a free, fair and supportive society”. , including animals.”
On January 21, thousands of people demonstrated in Lisbonbefore the possibility that the law that defines animal abuse as a crime is declared unconstitutional.
On the same day, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, defended that animal welfare should be “duly legislated”, recalling that Parliament can do so either “in the framework of ordinary legislation” or through the review process. Constitution that is being processed. in progress.
For his part, the Minister of the Environment, Duarte Cordeiro, said that the Government supports a clarification of the law that penalizes the mistreatment of companion animals, so that there are no mishaps in this matter.
The interpretation of the Constitutional Court resulted in impunity for horrendous crimes against animals.
The data sent to Lusa by the PSP and the GNR at the end of January indicate that the police arrested 17 people for abandoning or mistreating pets and registered almost 10,000 crimes in the last five years.
Source: Observadora
