The Cabinet of Ministers responded to a petition to create an animal police unit within the National Police of Ukraine. The government pointed out that the formation of separate units for the protection of animals from cruelty in the National Police is inappropriate, UNN reports with reference to the statement of the Cabinet of Ministers, published on the website of electronic petitions .
Details
As stated in the response to the petition, the organization and implementation of measures to protect animals from cruelty falls within the powers of local councils in the respective territory. In turn, the National Police supervises compliance with animal protection requirements and takes appropriate measures in case of violations of the law.
Law enforcement officers respond to allegations of animal cruelty by drawing up reports on administrative offenses, which are sent to the court or administrative commissions.
In case of detection of signs of a criminal offense, an investigative team is called to the scene for further response within its competence, and the materials are transferred to the investigative units of the National Police.
The Cabinet of Ministers should also note that the National Police is not empowered to carry out preventive and supervisory activities to ensure compliance with the rules and conditions for keeping animals in homes
The analysis of statistics on the number of administrative and criminal offenses committed in the field of animal protection from cruelty shows that they have a low share in the total number of offenses
According to the National Police, in 2021, police officers detected more than 5.2 million administrative offenses for cruelty to animals. This is 0.08 percent of the total number of administrative offenses detected.
The response to the petition also states that "police bodies and units are actively involved in the defense of Ukraine, in the fulfillment of territorial defense tasks, and in ensuring and implementing measures of the legal regime of martial law, which is a top priority in the activities of the security and defense sector.
Taking into account the above, we believe that the creation of separate units for the protection of animals from cruelty in the National Police is inappropriate at present
Recall
On Monday, April 8, a petition to create an animal police unit within the National Police of Ukraine , which was published on March 6, received more than 25 thousand votes.