Parliament ratifies 4th judicial reform package, animal protection law

The Turkish Parliament on early July 9 approved a long-awaited Animal Protection Law amendment that aimed to protect animals from being abused by humans, changing the scope of the crime committed against animals.

Accordingly, animals will now be removed from the "goods" status and will be counted as "living creatures" in the eyes of law.

The issue of animals was taken out of the point of "damaging property" and brought to the point of "harming life" and was added to the scope of crime. The distinction between "owned animals" and "unowned animals" was abolished.

As per the new law, people will be given jail terms for torturing and killing animals and harm-ing their offspring.

Cats and dogs will no longer be sold in pet shops or other such businesses. People can select their pets from the images listed, and they will be delivered to them from special breeding areas under the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry.

The concept of "ornament" was removed from the definition of "house and ornamental animal" in the law. Torture and cruel treatment of animals, sexual assault and rape, which were previously considered as "misdemeanors," were criminalized.

The law imposes six months to four years in prison for the person who deliberately kills a pet and one to five years in prison for those who kill endangered animal species.

The law envisages five to 10 years in prison for a person who harm an animal species, three months to two years imprisonment for those who make animals fight, six months to three years imprisonment for those who sexually assault and rape an animal and six months to three years imprisonment for those who torture or treat a pet inhumanly.

The dangerous animals will be determined by the ministry and...