President of Costa Rica Solis has signed a law against animal abusers in a public event. The law aims to punish people who tease and hurt animals.
Prior to the signing event, there was a march of supporters with their pets from Paseo Colon to one of the main avenues of San Jose. They walked with their dogs, cats, and many other animals to see President of Costa Rica approving the new law. The president led the march followed by a crowd celebrating and yelling “We could do it, we could do it!” .Many pro-animal organizations attended the activity as well.
The special guest and the “marshal of the activity” was Duke the dog, a dog that survived an animal abuse that left him snout – less.
In his speech, the president recognized the effort made by many organizations to promote the law in defense of the rights of animals, and the excellent job done by the congressmen.
“Today is a special day for Costa Rica; it actually becomes an unforgettable day for a lot of families in this country. We’ve made a great progress with the creation of a law that guarantees animal wellness” – he said in his speech.
The law was unanimously approved by the parliament after it had been previously introduced as a project and after six years of discussions and paragraph amendments. In the end, it was added some paragraphs that had been considered unconstitutional by the Constitutional Chamber.
The law seeks to:
- Sentence the abuser to two years in jail if he kills an animal.
- Sentence the abuser to one year if he hurts, has sexual relations or vivisection with an animal.
- Punish people who organize cock fighting, dog fights, and others.
- Punish pet owners who commit animal abandonment.
It only protects:
- Domestic animals: like dogs, cats, hens, among others.
- Tamed animals: animals that are actually wild but have been tamed for years. Example: wild horses, small felines, elephants, etc.
The law excludes fishing, aquatic, zoological, and livestock activities even those that promote the sanitary and reproduction control of animals.
Also, people who perform activities that guarantee public and veterinary health are exempted from any form of punishment.
It is important to say those wild animals are not included because they are already protected by a different law.
