Historic ruling, Ecuador confers full legal rights to wild animals

Great news for wild animals in Ecuador who enjoy full rights. This was decided by the Ecuadorian court with a sentence following an episode that occurred in 2019 concerning a monkey who died after being kidnapped and locked up in a zoo

He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him

In Ecuador there are wild animals subjects of law in all respects like what was decided by the Court of the country which thus takes another very important step in the protection of living beings residing there. It is in fact a fixed point that for the first time gives wildlife the so-called "rights of Nature - natural rights", extending to all its species a unprecedented protection.

Wild species and all their individuals have the right not to be hunted, fished, caught, collected, extracted, kept, held, trafficked, traded or traded as well as have the right to the free development of their animal behavior which includes the guarantee not to be domesticated and not be forced to assimilate characteristics or appearances imposed by human beings "

This is what Ecuadorian law decrees.

The decision was made following a case of a monkey named Estrellita that, when she was only one month old, she had been snatched from her natural habitat and kept as a pet for 18 years, illegally. In 2019, the authorities had ordered the kidnapping of the monkey and its transfer to a zoo, where the animal died within a month. However, its previous owner had launched a petition demanding that Estrellita be returned to him, but the court ruled that both the person and the authorities had violated the animal's rights.

The Ecuadorian law already contemplated the natural rights of animals, however some points of the Constitution generated not a little confusion, being able to have a different interpretation.

Although the rights of nature were enshrined in the Constitution, prior to this decision it was not clear whether individual animals could benefit from the rights of nature and be considered rights holders as part of nature "

environment lawyer Hugo Echeverría said at a press conference.

This decision now elevates wildlife conservation to a very high level, as the lawyer pointed out, also following protests from Ecuadorians and around the world after competitors cooked wild animals at MasterChef Ecuador. (Read also: MasterChef cooks meat from protected wild animals, angering Ecuador (and beyond))

. These are all the rights now recognized to wild animals:

right to exist (paragraph 111)
right not to be hunted, fished, caught, harvested, extracted, detained, detained, trafficked, traded or traded (paragraph 112)
right to the free development of one's animal behavior (paragraph 113)
right to liberty and to a good life (paragraph 119)
right to food according to the nutritional needs of the species, having access to adequate quantities of food and water to keep them healthy (paragraph 137)
right to live in harmony (paragraph 119).
right to health (paragraph 119)
right to habitat (para. 119)
right to claim their rights from the competent authorities (paragraph 121)
right to physical, mental and sexual integrity (paragraph 133)
right to live in an environment suitable for each species, with adequate conditions of shelter and rest (paragraph 137)
right to life in an environment free from violence, as well as in an environment free from cruelty, fear and distress (paragraph 137).