Activists and a legislator on Wednesday called for increased penalties for people who abuse animals following the prosecution of a case that they said ignored animal rights.
A National Taiwan University student surnamed Chen (陳), who allegedly strangled a popular stray cat nicknamed “Big Orange” in December last year, was last month charged with violating the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法), but the case was forwarded to the Taipei Summary Court at prosecutors’ request, which means that a judge will sentence Chen without initiating a full trial.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Huang Wei-cher (黃偉哲) said the prosecutors’ decision has deprived witnesses an opportunity to testify in court before a ruling is handed down.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
“People who abuse animals can be sentenced to up to one year in prison according to the Animal Protection Act, but they generally receive a sentence of less than three months in prison. However, criminal sentences given by the summary court can always be converted to fines. That means Chen can get away with the crime with a minimal punishment, or about NT$90,000 at best,” Huang said.
National Taiwan University instructor Audrey Vangeersdaele (王嫻如), who allegedly witnessed Chen abusing Big Orange, said that the student had also abused another cat, but prosecutors did not take that claim or other evidence she presented into consideration.
She said that prosecutors had instead tried to shorten the legal procedure because they believed the case was a trivial matter.
“I had been taking care of Big Orange for years and I witnessed the crime, but I have no right to represent Big Orange in court, even though I have all the evidence, including the corpse and a video that shows Chen killing the cat. How can animals be protected under Taiwan’s laws?” she said.
Huang and the activists called for amendments to the legislation to increase penalties for people who abuse animals and to award animal caretakers the right to sue people who abuse animals.
Under Taiwanese law, an animal is defined as property, so pet owners have the right to sue people who abuse their animal for property damage, but cruelty to stray animals can only be dealt with by prosecutors, Huang said.
“Many violent offenders have committed animal abuse prior to more serious crimes, and the US’ FBI earlier this year listed animal cruelty as an early indicator of violent crimes. Increased penalties for animal abuse and strict enforcement are necessary to prevent more serious crimes,” he said.
Lee Chien-ming (李建明), an activist who organized a campaign to call for increased penalties for animal cruelty, said the campaign aims to raise the maximum sentence for animal cruelty from one year to two years in prison, with a minimum sentence of six months in prison.
“While the time has yet to come when animal rights can be added to the Constitution, our proposal will raise the legal status of animals above property, which is what the public is willing to accept,” Lee said.
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