Animals need more legal protection

There is a growing need to make sure that all our animals are well-cared for. And, it is with this in mind that AKBAYAN recently filed Animal Life Advocacy and Guardianship Act (ALAGA), which seeks to amend the Animal Welfare Act of the Philippines.

“It is time to overhaul the law as population management tools for dogs and cats are absent from the old Animal Welfare Act and accountability for government-run facilities is virtually non-existent,” said AKBAYAN Representative Percival V. Cendana at the filing. “We have relied heavily on the inputs of The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) — the animal welfare organization who was the primary lobbyist of the Animal Welfare Act in 1998 and who subsequently led in the filing of criminal cases against animal offenders when there was no government agency or entity initiating the filing of complaints against those who abused animals. They have seen firsthand the gaps in enforcement and the snail’s pace at which the Committee on Animal Welfare churned out the Implementing Rules and Regulations for this law,” he added.

The highlights of the bill include:

The creation of a National Commission on Animal Welfare, an independent and autonomous quasi-judicial agency with full fiscal autonomy, rule-making authority, licensing and enforcement powers, and the mandate to facilitate all efforts in prosecuting animal cruelty cases;

Mandating of local government units to establish dedicated personnel with their local government veterinarians, deploy fully capacitated and trained personnel, and implement Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return(TNVR) programs as the primary, humane method of controlling stray animal populations;

Imposing strict public accountability on pounds, including mandatory spay-neuter prior to release, publicly accessible impoundment records and minimum operating hours open to the public;

Prohibiting of animal experimentation in elementary schools and requiring all secondary and tertiary institutions to adhere to global standards in the preservation and care of animals such as the internationally recognized 3Rs Principle (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement);

Imposing stricter penalties by making “fine AND imprisonment” as the minimum penalties for convicted animal offenders. (Note: The old law provides a choice between fine and imprisonment or fine or imprisonment);

Comprehensively prohibiting all forms of dog-meat trading, animal cruelty content, animal fighting and animal poisoning;

Providing for the integration of Animal Welfare Education in basic and higher education institutions; and

Establishing protection for those who rescue neglected animals by codifying the right of good faith rescuers to enter such premises under the doctrine of negotiorumgestio without criminal liability.

“We are hopeful that the ALAGA Bill will help protect animals from more suffering, especially since there has been a rise of cruelty reports and we have seen no action coming from the primary agency that was tasked to implement the Animal Welfare Act in 1998, which is the Bureau of Animal Industry,” said Atty. Anna Cabrera, executive director of The Philippine Animal Welfare Society.

Cabrera was also part of the original lobbying team for the Animal Welfare Act in 1998. “It is time to have a dedicated National Commission on Animal Welfare, and the participation of animal welfare organizations in enforcing this law.”