Animal rights advocates and legislators yesterday braved the rain and cold in Taipei to march for the inclusion of animal rights in the Constitution.
Nearly 100 people — some with pets in tow — attended the march, which set out from the Presidential Office Building for the Legislative Yuan at about 2pm.
Organized by the Animal Protection Legislation Movement Alliance, a coalition of eight animal rights groups, the demonstration was held to urge the government to draft an amendment enshrining legal protections for animals into the Constitution.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
Taiwan People’s Party Secretary-General Hsieh Li-kung (謝立功) praised the attendees for braving the cold, showing the force of will that would propel the movement forward.
Animals are not objects, but should be loved and cared for like children, Hsieh said, adding that treating animals well is indicative of a progressive nation.
Taiwan’s laws are severely outdated, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Sandy Yeh (葉毓蘭) told the gathering.
Photo: Sam Yeh, AFP
There are more than 250,000 cases of animal cruelty every year, but only the Animal Protection Division of the Council of Agriculture’s Department of Animal Husbandry is equipped to respond, she said.
Dogs, cats and other animals are all important members of the family, she said, adding that it is important to enact laws protecting them and requiring their owners to take responsibility for them.
People are animals, just like dogs and cats, New Power Party (NPP) Chairperson Chen Jiau-hua (陳椒華) said.
Animal protections are a universal right and enshrining it in the Constitution would foster this sentiment, she added.
About a week before the rally, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) told the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Central Standing Committee that she supports the advocates’ position, DPP Taipei City Councilor Hsu Shu-hua (許淑華) said.
The committee agreed, saying that the most immediate task would be amending the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法) to make repeat animal abusers criminally liable and treat animals as living beings instead of property, Hsu said.
The party has also proposed a special civil law and a special criminal law dealing with animal protections, as it would be faster than amending the Constitution, she added.
Italy on Feb. 9 became the 10th country to guarantee animals full rights under its constitution, Taiwan Animal Protection Monitor Network secretary-general Ho Tsung-hsun (何宗勳) said.
The network plans to make its case to the KMT caucus tomorrow at 10am, then to the TPP caucus on Wednesday at 4:30pm, Ho said.
Meetings have not yet been scheduled with the DPP or the NPP, he added.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS