日本語版

Once every five years! In year 2025 there will be a review of the “Act on Welfare and Management of Animals” in Japan.
To create a society that can protect animals harmed by their owners,
we call for emergency temporary custody of abused animals and loss of ownership of abusive owners.

Did you know that Japan’s current laws do not protect animals from abuse?

We began to collect signatures to have the following THREE points clearly stated in the Act on Welfare and Management of Animals (hereinafter referred to as “the Law”)  in order to make the Law that can truly “protect animals harmed by their owners”. Signatures that have been collected on the petition will be used to lobby members of the Diet to amend the Law.

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【Abstract】

(1)Emergency Temporary Protection – To ensure that abused animals are protected before it is too late, and not as “evidence”.
＞The local  administration, in cooperation with the police, must provide emergency temporary protection for animals that are (suspected to be) being abused at the appropriate time.

(2) Loss of Ownership – To ensure that abused animals do not have to return to their owners who may repeat the abuse.
＞Allow owners to lose ownership of their animals if certain conditions are met, such as if the abuse is severe or if the environment in which the animal is kept is not improved.

3) Custody of the abused animals by the local administration – To be able to guarantee a place for abused animals.
＞As a general principle, temporarily sheltered animals are kept by animal shelters operated by the local administration(after the loss of ownership, the local government will search for new owners in cooperation with the private sector, etc.)

 

【Body】

(1) Emergency Temporary Protection
In coexistence with companion animals, the responsibility of the owner  is critical. Owners are expected to properly care for their animals in the interest of their life and welfare.

On that basis, animals that have been abused or are suspected of having been abused by their owners (hereinafter referred to as “abused animals”), the following temporary custody shall be ensured at the appropriate time in order to protect the life and welfare of the abused animals.

＜In the case of Aggressive abuse (beating, kicking, pouring boiling water, etc.)

In principle, cases of aggressive abuse will be handled by the police. However, in situations where no time can be allowed for a moment’s respite, it is necessary to take immediate action, so the officials in charge of animal welfare placed by the local administration(hereinafter referred to as “the local administration”) may take temporary custody of the animal.

<In the case of Passive abuse (neglect)>

Clear guidelines (deadlines and goals) shall be established. The local administration will provide guidance in accordance with these guidelines, and if no improvement is seen after the deadline, the local administration will provide temporary protection in cooperation with the police.

If it is difficult to determine whether or not emergency temporary protection should be provided, an opinion should be sought from a group of experts*1.

In addition, since there are currently only a limited number of officials (and veterinarians) with expertise in animal abuse, it should also be clearly stated that the local administration should work to develop officials (and veterinarians) who can respond to abuse by having them take training courses, etc.

(2) Loss of ownership

Allows for the loss of ownership of the abused animal from the owner if it is determined in accordance with the investigation (such as on-site inspection)  and socially accepted practices*2 that there is no room for improvement and it is deemed difficult for the owner to care for the animal, regardless of whether or not there is a conviction.

<If the owner was convicted>

Conduct investigation such as another on-site investigation to confirm the situation.  Allows for the loss of ownership of the abused animal from the owner if the decision*2 is made that there is no room for improvement and it is difficult for the owner to take proper care of the animal. 

＜If the owner was not charged, etc.>

Conduct investigation such as another on-site investigation to confirm the situation.  Allows for the loss of ownership of the abused animal from the owner if the decision*2 is made that there is no room for improvement and it is difficult for the owner to take proper care of the animal. 

(3) Custody of abused animals by the local administration

Article 37-2 of the Law shall be amended to allow animal shelters operated by the local administration to perform the “custody” of the animals protected in 1) and 2) above.

Not only the local administration in charge of a protected animal subject to abuse, but also the administrations of other cities and prefectures, is uniquely obligated to take custody of the animal. However, in unavoidable cases, such as when the number of animals to be kept is likely to exceed the capacity (especially in cases where protection of a large number of animals at one time becomes necessary due to the Collapse of Animal Multiplexes), it will be possible to outsource storage operations to private sectors such as animal protection groups, veterinary medical association members, etc.

NOTES:
*1　The local administration will create a group of experts. Since decisions need to be made in line with expertise and socially accepted norms, the Group will include at least : an administrative veterinarian and an outside veterinarian with expertise in animal abuse (such as a veterinarian recommended by a local veterinary medical association or a specialist from a veterinary university), as well as private citizens, lawyers, etc.

*2  In making a decision, a group of experts*1 formulates a policy in accordance with socially accepted norms, based on (1) confirmation of environmental improvement, (2) the animal’s physical condition, and (3) the owner’s financial situation and (mental and physical) health status. The official appointed by the local administration (such as the director of the shelter operated by the local administration) will then make the final decision in accordance with the policy. A separate guideline (checklist) shall be established for the criteria for such judgment.

【Why Christel Vie Ensemble Foundation have begun to collect signatures?】

Animal cruelty has become a major topic in the news.
These days, we have been seeing more of the news related to the animal cruelty
However, when you see such news, two questions come to mind.

- Why weren’t the criminals caught until they were in such a terrible state? Were the animals not protected at the appropriate time?

- What will happen to the abused animals?

Currently, it is difficult to provide immediate protection for abused animals, and in most cases, the police will not act until the abused animal’s condition becomes visibly worse (or the animal dies).
The abused animals are protected as a “evidence” of a crime; however, once the animal has served as evidence in a crime, it must be returned to its owner unless the owner relinquishes ownership, no matter how guilty he or she is found or how likely he or she is to repeat the abuse.

Animals are not things/objects, but living beings. Why is it so difficult to protect animals even if they are in danger of death, and why are they treated as objects(evidence) even if they are protected, despite the fact that the Law stipulates that this is so?

The reason is that the law has not yet established clear regulations.

The current law does not protect animals.

We want to revise the Law and make a society that can protect animals harmed by their  Owners. We have begun the project  called “ #飼い主に傷つけられた動物を守れる社会に” project.

With this in mind, we have decided to start this signature drive.

We have asked for the cooperation of the following experts in the preparation of the signatures.

- Atsushi Hosokawa, (Attorney-at-Law)
- Akiko Asano(Attorney-at-Law)

【Comment from Christel Takigawa, Representative Director of Christel Vie Ensemble Foundation】

In 2014, I launched the foundation with the aim of realizing a society in which all life, including human life, can “Live Together “.   I have had many wonderful encounters with many people who are passionate about what they do. Among them, many of them felt a sense of crisis regarding the treatment of abused animals.

The current law does not protect animals from abuse.

We will continue to raise our voices “together” with everyone who feels the same way in order to revise the Law and create a society that can protect animals harmed by their owners.

We would really appreciate your cooperation.

【Outline of Christel Vie Ensemble Foundation】

The Christel Foundation operates under the slogan “We Live Together ”

The slogan of the Christel Foundation is “We Live Together”, based on the belief that coexistence between people and animals is not possible without improving animal welfare, a rich natural environment, and the human well-being , we have launched three projects:
1) Project Zero, which works to improve animal welfare, including the killing of dogs and cats,  2) Project Red, which aims to protect the natural environment and ecosystems by saving endangered species that are at the top of the ecosystem
3) Project SOS, which was launched last year, aims to achieve a world without animal abuse and other forms of abuse and violence.