Ana Ligia Mora, environmental expert, assured that more severe penalties should be imposed.
Experts and defenders of animal rights demand a reform of the Colombian Penal Code to restrict judicial benefits and ensure effective jail time for those who mistreat animals.
The petition arises after the recent national outrage generated by the case of “Cake”a cruelly attacked dog whose perpetrator was released due to a legal technicality.
Ana Ligia Moraan environmental expert in Medellín, stated that “criminals should be behind bars, not animals“.
Currently, the Penal Code punishes animal abuse with sentences of up to 63 months in prison. However, the problem is that the law allows those responsible to access criminal substitutes such as house arrest or conditional suspension of the sentence, which annuls effective confinement.
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“It is not only about increasing penalties, but about strengthen the state response to animal and environmental abusepromoting bills that restrict criminal subrogations or benefits such as house arrest,” Mora emphasized.
The demand for tougher penalties is based on an evolving legal framework: Law 1774 of 2016 He recognized animals as sentient beings, leaving behind the conception that they are mere instruments at the service of man. Likewise, the ruling C-332 of 2025 The Constitutional Court reveals that, although animals may have useful functions (agriculture, companionship), their use cannot be merely instrumental.
Beyond the criminal sanction, Ana Ligia Mora specified the need to a cultural and educational transformation. Mora proposes incorporating into the educational system courses and programs aimed at environmental awareness and respect for animal life from the first stages of training.
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Within the framework of restorative justice, it is also proposed to implement accessory sanctions of an educational naturesuch as participation in animal aid or rescue programs for those who commit aggression.
In short, the expert concludes that it is imperative abandon the anthropocentric vision and recognize that life on the planet deserves respect for its intrinsic value, not only for its usefulness to human beings.
