Colombia Has a New Focus on Animal Rights

There are a lot of people who don’t see animals as living creatures that feel. They only see them as objects, which is why there are so many cases of abandonment and animal cruelty. Those who commit these acts aren’t punished by the courts either. However, more people are becoming defenders of animal rights and they’re for big changes in Colombia.

That’s what’s happening in Colombia. This country has large areas where animals from different species, origins, and breeds live. This all started with Lilia Sanín who is a lawyer that started to fight for animal rights.

Lilia Sanín and her new focus on animal rights

Lilia Sanín’s main goal was to shine a light on the fact that animals are living beings who have feelings. They’re not objects.

As a result, the penalty for abandoning and mistreating animals has become harsher. Animals are now receiving more protection from the government now that they are considered living beings that have feelings.

Lilia Sanín was asked why she did this. According to the Colombian newspapers, she replied, saying:

“In my particular case, being able to defend animals from a legal standpoint is an opportunity that I thought was a gift and a higher power gave it to me. It allows me to endlessly thank those who have been unconditional friends to me in life. And, it allowed me to see my profession as a way to help them be seen as living beings and not objects of cruelty and indifference.”

How animal rights are treated in Colombia

In Colombia, mistreating animals has always been thought of as more of a punishment than a crime. In cases of animal cruelty, only the police came to take care of the problem immediately.

This was covered by Law 84 of 1989 which said that the legal definition of animals in the country is as objects, not as living, feeling beings.

These laws encouraged abuse and abandonment in the country.

But this has all changed thanks to Lilia Sanín’s initiative.

New laws for animal rights in Colombia

City hall talked about this subject, and people suddenly started by talking about the running of the bulls. This activity was recognized as something that should have been banned for a long time.

In this meeting, they made appropriate corrections to the law so that animals would be seen as living creatures and not things. They also decided to demand the following provisions that everyone should follow and those who do don’t are punished by law:

• Animals should be kept in hygienic places that are well kept with ventilation and enough room for them to move freely. They should also enjoy the right amount of light.
• They should be given food, drink, medicine, and medical attention on a constant and abundant basis. This ensures that they are in both good emotional and physical states.
• In harsh weather, the animals should also be given a good shelter. This could be a warm place to stay.
• Animals shall not be harmed by hitting, burns, stabbings, or by using any other form of abuse.
• It’s forbidden to kill an animal for no reason at all.
• It’s forbidden to kill an animal by causing it to suffer a long death. This includes butchers, who must follow the government’s regulations for slaughtering animals that are going to be used as food. Therefore, these animals must be quickly slaughtered in a humane manner.
• Also, animals shall not be used for fights.

Conclusion

The law continues with hundreds of provisions that guarantee animal’s well-being and will make Colombia a place where animals can live in peace.

Just as there are several countries like Colombia, Spain has also increased their punishments for animal cruelty. However, in My Animals, hopefully, this will mark a precedent that makes the world a better place, full of happiness, healthy animals.