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Press release, Feb 19th, 2018
In Finland, the Animal Protection Act from the year 1996 is undergoing a profound renewal. The new proposal for Animal Welfare Act is the most important body of legislation concerning animals and animal keeping in Finland for decades. The goal of this legislation is to improve animal welfare and to clarify the legislation of animal protection. The new legislation is going to come into effect in the beginning of year 2020.
The proposal, currently on consultation round, clearly shows that this legislation has been prepared based on the views of the Finnish government and farm producers, and not on the views of animal protection and animal justice organizations nor those of Finnish citizens. Scientific studies on the needs of animals, such as bovines in stalls, sows in pig cages, or individual animals in fur farms have been completely overlooked.
Finnish government has outlined in its program that the expenses of farm producers will not increase during its reign. “Most of the proposed improvements have a marginal effect, are ambiguous in nature, or concern only on a limited number of animals. The current proposal does not change the fact that farm animals are still regarded as an exploitable mass, whose care can be on a minimal level, with emphasis being on physical wellbeing instead of comprehensive wellbeing where the dignity of life is taken into consideration”, Santeri Pienimäki, the chairperson of EOP, sums up the deficiencies of this proposal.
The new Animal Welfare Act, if it comes into effect in its current form, is a watered-down, unworthy law, which is open for arbitrary interpretations. While in force, it would position the Finnish animal keeping far below the level that is currently effective in countries comparable to Finland. Animal Justice Party, EOP, demands that the current proposal for animal legislation must be returned back to its preparation. Currently, it is inherently contradictory, it promotes inequality of species, and the letter and spirit of the law are in contradiction. EOP has sent a detailed statement on this proposal to the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
For more information, please contact:
EOP chairperson
Santeri Pienimäki
santeri.pienimaki@eop.fi
+358 40 830 1160
EOP public relations manager
Tiina Ollila
tiina.ollila@eop.fi
