By Lee Hyo-sik
The government will toughen penalties for those who mistreat dogs and other animals from next year amid growing cases of animal cruelty in recent months.
People who either kill or inflict severe injuries on animals will be put behind bars from next year, while pet owners will be required to register them with municipal administrations from 2013 as part of government efforts to prevent animals from being abused or abandoned.
These and other measures, designed to better protect animal rights, are included in a revised Animal Protection Act, which was approved last week by the National Assembly’s plenary session, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said Monday.
Under the revision, animal abusers will face up to one year in prison or a maximum fine of 10 million won ($9,100) from 2012. Currently, those caught mistreating animals are subject to only up to 5 million won in fines.
“We think the current punishment is not harsh enough to prevent people from mistreating dogs and other pets. So, we decided to toughen the penalty and make it possible for habitual animal abusers and those killing them to be sentenced to a jail term,” a ministry spokesman said.
The revised act will go into effect in July 2012.
Additionally, people who raise pets will be obliged to register ownership with respective municipal administrations in 2013. Currently, pet owners are advised to do so on a voluntary basis.
“If the pet registration system becomes mandatory, it will be much easier for pet owners to locate their lost animals. The measure will also help discourage people from abandoning pets,” the spokesman said.
The number of pets either intentionally abandoned or lost increased to over 100,000 last year from 25,000 in 2003, according to the ministry
Municipal administrations will also be required to rescue and care for animals abused or intentionally abandoned by owners. The owners will be obliged to pay for their pets’ medical treatment costs and other related expenses.
There have been many cases of animal cruelty over the past year, triggering anger from animal rights groups and the general public.
On May 24, a local broadcaster aired footage of a dog being beaten by a man in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province. After the beating, the perpetrator left the scene in a hurry and the severely injured dog was taken to a nearby veterinary clinic by the camera crew.
The incident caused public uproar, with thousands of citizens filing a petition with the police to apprehend the man. But he still remains at large.
In January, seven high school students were apprehended for savagely killing nine dogs in their village in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province. They told police they did it for fun.
In June last year, a young woman threw her neighbor’s cat from the 10th floor of an apartment building to vent her anger against her boyfriend. In another case a 70-year-old woman drew fierce public condemnation for throwing the body of an abandoned cat she killed out of a building.