Federal Government To Ban These Cruel and Unusual Acts

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Published October 19, 2018 at 12:59 am

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If you’re an animal lover, the federal government has got some good news for you.

Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould announced on Thursday, October 18 on Parliament Hill that she is tabling Bill C-84, which would amend the Criminal Code to clearly define and outlaw bestiality and animal cruelty.

In 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada held in a court case called R v DLW that Canada’s bestiality offences did not prohibit non-penetrative sex acts with animals. Minister Wilson-Raybould’s bill seeks to close that loophole to prohibit any sexual contact between a person and an animal.

The second amendment pertains to animal cruelty, specifically with regards to animal fighting.

“Bill C-84 will prohibit any form of animal fighting, including the promoting, arranging and profiting off the activity. It will also include banning the breeding, training and transporting animals to fight, as well as the operations of an arena for such purposes,” Wilson-Raybould continued, adding that the government will work on tracking cases of animal cruelty for purposes of public safety.

“We need to end violence and cruelty towards animals and this bill will close critical gaps in the law pertaining to bestiality and animal fighting,” Wilson-Raybould said, adding that there were ‘established links between bestiality and child abuse.’

The minister also clarified that the amendments would have no impact on legitimate animal husbandry, veterinary purposes, and does not apply to the legitimate raising and training of a dog for hunting.  

When asked how big of an issue is animal fighting in Canada, the minister said they don’t have specific data on the prevalence of bestiality or animal fighting, citing there were specific cases that could be referred to.

It seems this Twitter user encapsulated the general reaction of Canadians when the Justice Minister made the announcement:

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