Akbayan party-list Rep. Percival Cendaña has called for the passage of their bill which seeks stronger protection of animals, after reports on the dumping of 29 dead pets’ remains in the City of San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.
In a statement on Saturday, Cendaña called for the passage of House Bill (HB) No. 11495 or the proposed Animal Life Advocacy and Guardianship Act (ALAGA), after netizens and different organizations sounded the alarm on the dumping of 29 pets in a vacant lot in the said city.
‘Nakakalungkot at nakakagalit itong ganitong ginawang pag tapon sa labi ng mga aso at pusa na parang ordinaryong basura. Kahit hayop deserve naman ng maayos na libing,’ Cendaña said in a tweet on X.
(It is deeply saddening and infuriating to learn about what some people did to the remains of pet dogs and cats, as if they were mere trash. Even animals deserve proper burial.)
‘If indeed these were dumped by pet aftercare facilities then we need them to be held to account and at the very least have their business licenses suspended. Kaya kailangan isabatas ang ALAGA Bill upang may maayos na regulation ng mga animal control facilities at proper reporting and documentation for our pets,’ he added.
(If indeed these were dumped by pet aftercare facilities then we need them to be held to account and at the very least have their business licenses suspended. That’s why we need to enact the ALAGA Bill so that there will be proper regulation of animal control facilities and proper reporting and documentation for our pets.)
Cendaña’s statement came after an animal rescue page on Facebook said that the remains of 26 dogs and three cats were ‘thrown away like trash’ in a vacant lot.
According to the Luna and Furry Siblings Facebook page, there were no microchips used for the pets, but they were labeled with their exact names and weight at the time of death.
Aside from Cendaña, other lawmakers from Akbayan party-list like Rep. Chel Diokno and Rep. Dadah Kiram Ismula, and Dinagat Islands Rep. Kaka Bag-ao, authored HB No. 11495.
If enacted, HB No. 11495 will amend the Animal Welfare Act of 1998, as amended by Republic Act No. 10631, to further strengthen the country’s animal protection laws.
Section 1 of the said law, should HB No. 11495 be signed into law, will mandate the government to ‘promote the humane and ethical treatment of animals’ based on the following criteria:
adequate nutrition
appropriate physical environment
optimal health and veterinary care
opportunities to express natural behaviors; and
the promotion of a positive mental state free from fear, distress, and suffering
‘The state recognizes animals as sentient beings capable of feeling pain, distress, comfort, and pleasure. It will align domestic animal welfare law with the universal declaration on animal welfare, world organization for animal health standards, and the Philippines’ obligations under the convention on biological diversity and the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora,’ the proposed Section 1 read.
There will also be a new Section 5(c) which tackles the issue of humane euthanasia, or the termination of an animal’s life to spare it from suffering.
Under the said section, euthanasia will only be conducted by a licensed veterinarian for animals ‘that are severely injured, terminally ill, or afflicted with a highly communicable disease.’
‘The conduct of euthanasia shall be reported to the public at least eight (8) hours prior to the procedure through social media or other publicly accessible means, accompanied by a veterinarian’s assessment,’ the bill read. Stiffer penalties will also be prescribed:
causing the death of animals: imprisonment of one (1) year and six (6) months and one (1) day to three (3) years, and a fine of P100,000.00 to P500,000.00
causing grave injury to an animal: imprisonment of one (1) year and one (1) day to one (1) year and six (6) months, and a P50,000.00 to P80,000.00, if the animal survives but is severely injured and requires human intervention to sustain its life
causing injury not classified as grave. imprisonment of six (6) months to one (1) year and a fine not exceeding P30,000.00