Mexico passed unprecedented animal welfare reforms. What happens next?

This week was a big win for animals across Mexico.

On December 2nd, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum signed a series of constitutional amendments to create a comprehensive federal animal welfare law. The change marks the first mention of non-human animals in Mexico’s constitution and is a landmark for Mexico’s animal rights movement, which has long drawn attention to rampant animal abuse and extreme confinement in the country’s growing meat industry. This will be a temporary result.

“This is a huge deal,” says Dulce Ramirez, executive director of Animal Equality Mexico and vice president of Animal Equality’s Latin American operations. These constitutional reforms came after two years of campaigning by animal advocacy groups such as Igualdad Animal Mexico, Humane Society International (HSI/Mexico), and Movimiento Conciencia.

These reforms are unique internationally. Although national animal protection laws are not uncommon, most countries have no mention of animals in their constitutions. Angela Fernandes, a law professor at the University of Toronto, told Box that the constitution “reflects where we stand in society,” and that any constitutional amendment is a big symbolic issue. Ta.

Nine countries other than Mexico include references to animals in their constitutions, but those references are generally brief and open to interpretation. “Mexico is different,” Kristen Stilt, faculty director of the Animal Law and Policy Program at Harvard Law School, told Vox. “It’s going to be longer and more specific. It’s in some provisions. It’s not just generalizations.”

Many countries have laws against animal cruelty. That includes the United States, where all 50 states have anti-cruelty laws, but that doesn’t mean they’re particularly effective at stopping violence against animals. Part of the problem is that these laws very often exempt livestock such as cows, pigs, and chickens, leaving the vast majority of animals that suffer at the hands of humans excluded from protection. That’s where Mexico’s reforms stand out. The reforms aim to protect all animals, including captive animals and other exploited species.

The reforms in Mexico, the world’s largest Spanish-speaking country, represent a major step forward in the status of animals in the world. Macarena Montes-Franceschini, a fellow in the Animal Law and Policy Program at Harvard Law School, said the move could set a precedent for other countries in Latin America, where active animal rights movements have emerged in recent years.

Still, as one of the world’s leading producers of beef, chicken, pork, dairy and eggs, Mexico has an intensive livestock industry similar to the United States, said Anton Aguilar, executive director of HSI/Mexico. he says. As in the United States and other countries, there is no doubt that corporate interests will want to influence the enactment of animal welfare laws that can affect their bottom lines. The question now is what changes the constitutional amendment will actually bring to Mexico’s animal laws, and to what extent they will be effective.

What will these reforms bring?

This reform consists of changes to three separate articles of the Mexican Constitution. The most fundamental change would be to amend Article 73 of the Constitution, which governs Parliament’s power to legislate. This provision currently gives the federal government the power to enact laws regarding animal welfare and protection.

Until now, animal welfare has been largely left to local and state authorities, resulting in uneven laws and enforcement across the country. All Mexican states have animal protection laws, but only three include livestock: Hidalgo, Colima, and, as of last month, Oaxaca following pressure from animal protection groups. And while Mexico has a federal law on livestock health that focuses on farmed animals and includes extensive references to animal welfare, this law is designed to protect human health, not animals. It was enacted. Mexico’s federal wildlife laws are similarly designed to focus on sustainability and conservation rather than protecting individual animals from abuse.

Perhaps the most important part of this reform is the amendment to Article 4 of the Mexican Constitution, which prohibits the cruelty of animals and directs the Mexican state to ensure the protection, proper treatment, preservation and care of animals. Despite its wide range of language, Ramirez believes this is a significant improvement over existing animal welfare laws. She and other advocates worked to ensure that animals were not excluded, especially given that farm animals have historically been excluded from animal protection.

“In Mexico, it’s really, really important to start with this first step — but it’s a big step — because now it’s all animals,” Ramirez said.

Changes to Sections 4 and 73 will accelerate federal legislation on animal welfare. Under these reforms, the Mexican Congress has enacted the first-of-its-kind General Law on Animal Welfare, Care and Protection, which addresses and develops regulations to prevent the abuse of animals of all kinds, including animals in captivity. are instructed to create. Aguilar said they are animals, wild animals, laboratory animals and companion animals.

According to a reform order published last week, the general animal welfare law must take into account animals’ “nature, characteristics and connections with humans.” What does this mean in practice? Ramirez gives the example of chickens, and part of the natural behavior of these animals is that they can spread their wings and move around. But if the chickens are kept in cages, as is standard practice on egg factory farms, they can’t do either of those things. The idea is now to develop legal standards that consider the ability to express these natural behaviors as part of welfare. (However, this wording can also be interpreted to prioritize human needs, especially the reference to animals’ “connections with people.”) Animal rights organizations have interpreted this in terms of animal welfare. He said that the word “connection” evokes something that humans owe to animals.

Finally, Article 3 of the Mexican Constitution, which deals with the education system, was also amended to require the inclusion of animal welfare in the school curriculum for elementary and high school students. Aguilar said the change could help future generations “change and shift attitudes in a very permanent and long-term way.” However, the text of the new constitution is not specific and the devil is in the details.

What’s next for animal welfare in Mexico?

Ramirez and Aguilar said Mexico’s supporters have two focuses going forward. One is to consolidate general animal welfare legislation into strong legislation, and the other is to work with the Department of Education to meaningfully introduce animal welfare into the national curriculum.

Avoiding industry takeovers will also be important for lawmakers working on new animal welfare legislation. A variety of stakeholders, including academics, veterinarians and other animal professionals, and powerful corporate interests such as livestock producers, will want a say in what regulations are included in the law.

Asked what concerns he had regarding the implementation of the reforms, Fernandes first pointed to shaky business interests. “Maybe there will be a generous justification in line with the wishes of the industry?” she asked. Animal Equality also told Vox in an email that even in situations like this, where Mexican authorities are obligated to enact a law, they sometimes fail to do so.

However, the animal rights movement has connections that go beyond the political realm and are likely to have an advantage in proposing what should be included in this law. Ramírez told Box that Animal Equality Mexico works with both liberals and conservatives to find agreement on animal rights. Despite Mexico’s political polarization, the animal welfare reform passed “very quickly” through both chambers of Congress and was passed unanimously, Aguilar said.

“Animal issues are an issue where political forces can find common ground,” he added.

The recently elected left-wing Morena party, to which Mr. Sheinbaum belongs, also holds a majority of seats in both of Mexico’s congresses. Before signing the constitutional amendment, Sheinbaum expressed support for it in his first speech as the nation’s leader.

But Aguilar and Ramirez say there are internal challenges as well. Animal welfare organizations covering different species and different aspects of animal welfare need to work as a united front. The work of some organizations focuses primarily on the protection of livestock, others on banning bullfighting and cockfighting, and still others on companion animals. It may be difficult to determine a proposal that will work for everyone.

Ensuring meaningful implementation and enforcement is also a key concern. “Obviously good words can be tarnished by improper enforcement,” Stilt said.

“I think the worst that could happen is that this is just a clean clause in the constitution and nothing else,” Montes Franceschini said. “We are not seeing any change from the government, they are not giving resources to the agencies that should ensure animal protection, they are underfunded and understaffed, and they are not teaching police officers how to deal with cases of animal abuse. I think you will be worried.”

The future of animal welfare will be determined in the Global South, where meat consumption and American-style factory farming are rapidly growing. Animal rights activists in Mexico are entering new territory that is more ambitious and potentially more impactful, a testament to the strength and political savvy of the movement. Other countries will also be paying attention.

“It’s going to be pretty interesting,” Aguilar said. “We are optimistic that we will find a compromise that is good for the animals.”