Since January, over 40,000 Quebecers and the Montreal SPCA have signed the “Animals are not things” manifesto that calls for a reconsideration of the legal status of animals.
The manifesto demands that animals be granted legal status distinct from that of inanimate objects, taking into
account their capacity to feel pleasure and pain – to grant them, in short, the status of sentient beings.
France recently took a step in this direction in response to a petition launched by Fondation 30 millions d’amis. Animals in France are now classified as “living, sentient beings.” “The manifesto’s success in Quebec clearly shows that it is high time for this province to address the question of animals’ legal status,” said Me Sophie Gaillard, lawyer and campaigns manager for the Montreal SPCA Animal Advocacy Department.
We are calling on Stéphanie Vallée, the new minister of justice, to ensure a debate on this issue takes place at the National Assembly, and to initiate the necessary reforms.”
