Following from our recent post about the so-called ‘Zoo’ at Novi Pazar:
We are now moving on further with the campaign to expose all Serbian zoos to the EU Commission. With the help of Serbian campaigners, a dossier of information is currently being collated which will then be used to produce a detailed report on the conditions at many Serbian zoos. This report will be submitted to the EU Commission as part of a 21 nation series of ‘zoo condition’ reports currently being compiled by the Born Free Foundation here in the Uk.
http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/zoo-check/zoos/eu-zoo-inquiry/
A fast track to those individual national reports which are already produced can be seen via the following link-
http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/zoo-check/zoos/euzoos/country-reports/
– simply click on any national report, and once accessed, use the size controls at the top of the report to select text size and to turn each of the pages comprising the report.
As a very necessary piece of data to support this work, with the valuable help of Slavica in Serbia and translations from Tatjana here in England, we now have access to the existing Serbian legislation which is applicable to the keeping of animals in Serbian zoos and wildlife parks.
The Serbian existing version of this legislation can be seen in the following figures:
With the help of Tatjana; we are now able to provide a translation of this Serbian legislation.
It reads:
Extract from ‘THE’
Official Document on the Law for Animal Welfare Serbia
Section 14.
Protection of Animal welfare in Zoo’s. sanctuaries or breeding facilities of wild animals
Clause 71.
The proprietor of zoological park or a mini park, sanctuary or a nursery/ breeding facility for wild animals has obligation to provide:
1) Space and equipment for keeping and reproduction of animals in captivity which are adequate for needs of every particular animal breed
2) Adequate space for animal isolation, quarantine
3) Protection of animals from the visitors and visitors from the animals
4) Provision of ongoing health care
5) Food and water in conjunction with needs for every particular animal breed/ species
6) Keeping official record of every individual animal, as well as a record of all sold or exchanged animals, or animals that are given to third parties as a gift
7) Program of keeping up the animal collection/assortment with all the species and plan of looking after any new members that have been born in captivity
8) Financial means that are necessary for continuous work of the zoo
9) Plan for animal safety and re-homing in a case of zoo’s closure of any other unforeseen eventualities like bad weather.
Conditions about animal welfare that are listed in clause 1 of this document section 14 have to be fulfilled and this has to be formally approved and verified by minister.
Conditions from clause 2 of this section is final, but can be contested in court of law.
Minister, in collaboration and approvals of acting minister for the environmental protection will provide detailed conditions/guidelines for clause 1 of this section as well as all other elements necessary for operation of mini zoo facilities – parks.
Clause 72.
Person responsible for the protection of animal welfare in zoological park, sanctuary or breeding facility for wild animals must have completed studies on academic level with title – diploma – master in veterinary science (doctor for veterinary medicine ) or biological science (diploma zoologist /biologist – master) or completed basic studies in the length of minimum of 5 years in the field of veterinary science or minimum of 4 years in the field of biological science.
Persons that are in direct care of the animals must be trained in the welfare field.
Minister, in collaboration and approvals of acting Minister for the environmental protection will provide program for training of persons that are going to provide animal welfare from clause 2 of this section.
Clause 73.
Movement of wild animals that are under the special regime of animal protection in conjunction with local and international regulations can be carried out only in-between zoological parks, sanctuaries and breeding facilities with approval by minister and acting minister for the environmental protection.
End of clauses 71/72 and 73.
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There are many irregularities in this documentation which are of concern to us and which we hope will be of even greater interest to the EU Commission when they are provided with the national report for Serbian zoos. For obvious reasons we are not going to detail our areas of the (Serbian) legislation that we will especially be concentrating on, but as you can see from the legislation text which has been reproduced above, there may be quite a lot of questions that we need to ask the Ministry regarding their authorisation procedures associated with the keeping of animals in Serbian zoos.
We have special concerns about the space allocations which are provided to animals, and we also question the requirements of Clause 72 – that the “Person responsible for the protection of animal welfare in zoological park, sanctuary or breeding facility for wild animals must have completed studies on academic level with title – diploma – master in veterinary science (doctor for veterinary medicine ) or biological science (diploma zoologist /biologist – master) or completed basic studies in the length of minimum of 5 years in the field of veterinary science or minimum of 4 years in the field of biological science”.
Investigations into conditions at Novi Pazar zoo appear to show that this facility is very far from what one should expect from a person who has “completed studies on academic level with title – diploma – master in veterinary science (doctor for veterinary medicine ) or biological science (diploma zoologist /biologist – master) or completed basic studies in the length of minimum of 5 years in the field of veterinary science or minimum of 4 years in the field of biological science”.
Novi Pazar zoo is nothing more than a series of prison cells for animals.
One could almost say that the information detailed in Clauses 71-73 of the Official Document on the Law for Animal Welfare Serbia – Section 14. – Protection of Animal welfare in Zoo’s. sanctuaries or breeding facilities of wild animals; is nothing more than a paper smokescreen to give the impression that there are strict animal welfare laws for both animals and the persons controlling the facilities, when in fact there would appear to be nothing of the sort.
We are working now to expose this to the EU in the future report.
What do you think ?
Do the following photographs of Novi Pazar zoo show:
- Space and equipment for keeping and reproduction of animals in captivity which are adequate for needs of every particular animal breed ?
- Food and water in conjunction with needs for every particular animal breed/ species ?
- Financial means that are necessary for continuous work of the zoo ?
- Persons that are in direct care of the animals must be trained in the welfare field ?
- Ministers who are currently providing animal welfare from clause 2 of this section ?
– We think not !
Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, PHOTOGRAPHS - **WARNING** (Animal Suffering), SERBIA (Central Serbia: Capital - Belgrade) and (Serbia, ZOO(S) | Leave a comment »
Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) 