CHP (Republican People’s Party) leader Özgür Özel has announced plans to challenge the law concerning stray animals at the Constitutional Court. “It is our duty to take this law to the Constitutional Court. We will do so as soon as possible and request a suspension of the execution of the law,” he stated.
Following the Turkish Grand National Assembly’s approval of the bill amending the Animal Protection Law, which includes provisions related to stray animals, CHP Chairman Özgür Özel made a statement. Özel said, “It is clear that the bill is unconstitutional and does not defend the right to life. Therefore, we will evaluate the process together and take this law to the Constitutional Court. Our municipalities will continue to fulfill their responsibilities as they have done so far.”
The bill amending the Animal Protection Law was passed in the Turkish Grand National Assembly with 275 votes in favor and 224 against. Speaking about the steps CHP will take next, Özel emphasized:
WE WILL TAKE THE PROCESS TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT”
“First of all, it is clear that the bill is unconstitutional and does not defend the right to life. Therefore, we will evaluate the process and take the law to the Constitutional Court. The right to a healthy environment is essential for people, and especially considering that vaccinated stray dogs serve as a barrier between wild and urban life against diseases like rabies, a significant public health risk has been taken. We will evaluate all of these factors and take the law to the Constitutional Court. This is our duty. We will do so as soon as possible and request a suspension of the execution of the law. For the past four and a half years, the Constitutional Court has not applied the important measure of suspending the execution of laws in response to our appeals. We hope they will reconsider this stance. I would like to thank everyone, especially the CHP group, who objected to this.
RETRACTED THANKS TO THE EFFORTS OF THE OPPOSITION”
In fact, something rare will happen: we will hold a closed group meeting at 4 AM. It won’t be long, but our group has been defending what they believe in with incredible effort for the past two and a half months. Without the extraordinary efforts and determination of the CHP Group Deputy Chairpersons, leadership, and all our MPs, this law would have passed with euthanasia provisions. The opposition here, combined with public sensitivity, forced many retractions. The law is still very dangerous, but in its original form, it was a massacre law. These retractions were made thanks to the great efforts of the opposition and our group, and this must be acknowledged. Now I will make a thank-you speech to our group, and we will transition to a closed group meeting to make a brief assessment of our summer work, as MPs don’t take vacations; they work during the summer. CHP municipalities will resist the implicit message of this law, which essentially says, ‘You can’t handle this, so go ahead and commit a massacre,’ and we will not comply with this implicit instruction. Moving forward, we will do everything we can to build more shelters, vaccinate, neuter, and find homes for animals. However, it is impossible to fully meet these responsibilities with municipal resources and under these circumstances. Any negative outcomes from now on will be the responsibility of today’s irresponsible approach to life. Our municipalities will continue to do their part as they have always done.”
EDITOR’S NOTE: CHP leader made this statement at the end of July.
