Thailand’s National Legislative Assembly (NLA) has passed the first ever Animal Welfare Bill in the country, designed to punish people who abuse or neglect animals. While welcoming the new animal welfare law in Thailand, Soi Dog Foundation has concerns as to how effective it will be in its present form. Certainly the law will not stop the dog meat trade, just as laws on drug trafficking have not stopped that or other already illegal trades such as timber and wildlife smuggling. Neither will it stop the corruption that allows the trade to flourish. The law does NOT make it clear that eating dogs, cats and other species is illegal and the growing skin trade is not mentioned at all. The best we can hope for is that the maximum penalties introduced will be used by the courts, based on the cruelty involved, and this will persuade people that the profits made from dogs do not justify the risks involved. Our billboard campaign (see: bit.ly/joinourfight) is now more crucial than ever in helping us catch the traffickers and sellers. New billboards will be erected warning of the possible penalties to further try and deter those involved. Similarly our petition (savedogs.soidog.org/petition) will be used to put further pressure on the government to clarify that the trade is illegal and to pursue offenders through the courts. Please click below to read Soi Dog’s full press release on the Animal Welfare Bill.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Nov 2014 05:09:05 +0000
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