
PETITION ANIMAL RIGHTS


PETITION TO THE HOUSE OF
COMMONS IN PARLIAMENT ASSEMBLED
TO
PROTECT ANIMALS FROM CRUELTY
WE, THE
UNDERSIGNED RESIDENTS OF CANADA DRAW THE ATTENTION OF THE HOUSE TO THE
FOLLOWING:
THAT,
WHEREAS the vast majority of Canadians support modern and enforceable
legislation that protects all animals, whether wild or tame from deliberate and
reckless acts of cruelty, abuse and neglect;
WHEREAS at present, not all animals are protected from criminal
acts of cruelty, abuse and neglect because provisions are found under the
property section of the Criminal Code of Canada; leaving law enforcement
officers, attorneys and judges at a loss to effectively prosecute criminal acts
of cruelty;
WHEREAS the cruelty provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada do not include a concise definition of animal other than to reference specific animals such as cattle;
WHEREAS the amendments to these provisions which Parliament passed
in April 2008 merely raised the potential penalties for the few accused persons
who can be convicted and did not materially improve protection for animals;
WHEREAS the Criminal Code of Canada does not obligate the courts
to order offenders to pay restitution costs to animal welfare organizations
that care for abused animals subsequent to acts of abuse or cruelty;
WHEREAS the Criminal Code of Canada uses the term “wilful neglect”
which requires neglect to be a product of predetermined action;
WHEREAS the majority of animal abuse investigations do not result
in a successful prosecution under the Criminal Code;
WHEREAS further amendments to the Criminal Code are still required
to close the many loopholes that allow most perpetrators of animal cruelty to
avoid conviction;
WHEREAS Canada still has weaker legislation than Austria, Great
Britain, New Zealand, Norway, Poland and many other countries around the world;
THEREFORE, your petitioners call upon
parliament to modernize the animal cruelty provisions in the Criminal Code,
sections 445,446 and 447 to effectively protect all animals from deliberate
acts of cruelty. We also request that animal welfare be written into the
constitution as it is in several European countries, it is the combination of
these two things that will provide the force behind law.
Comment