On Thursday evening, the Belgian House of Representatives approved a law enshrining animal welfare in the constitution, according to several reports Belgian media Friday. The Senate previously voted in favor of the constitutional amendment, which requires a two-thirds majority. After Italy, Germany, Austria, Slovenia and Luxembourg, Belgium is the sixth European country to grant constitutional protection to animals.
The new constitution promises that Belgian governments will henceforth “endeavour to protect and care for animals as sentient beings.”
The most important Belgian animal rights organization GAIA owns it In a comment About the “historic achievement.” The change in law not only has symbolic value, he says it will “contribute concretely” to the protection of animals in Belgium because animal welfare now has more legal weight than before. “In addition, the inclusion of animals and their welfare in the Constitution will encourage the legislative and executive branches to adopt laws to improve animal protection.”
Opponents, including the Flemish Liberals and Christian Democrats, have expressed concerns that the change will hinder agricultural permits. In addition, they fear that the constitutional amendment will get hunters, livestock markets and fishermen into legal trouble.
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