Controversy In Panama: Fines For Pet Owners
Date
11/15/2024 2:13:59 PM
(MENAFN- Newsroom Panama)
A municipality in Panama City has imposed a fine of 100 dollars for noise made by domestic animals of more than 50 decibels between six in the evening and seven in the morning, sparking controversy in the country and rejection by activists, who point to dogs as the target of the regulation.
The decree signed by the mayor of Arraiján, Stefany Dayan Peñalba, published in the official gazette on October 31 and disseminated this Tuesday by local media, establishes as an offense punishable by 100 dollars“noise in residential areas and/or buildings due to animals in them from 6:00 p.m. (23:00 GMT) to 7:00 a.m.” (12:00 GMT), citing as a permitted limit“50 decibels.”
This rule has caught the attention of animal rights activists, who have focused the debate on dog barking.
“The Animal Protection Community in Panama says NO to the alleged Decree Law of the Mayor of Arraiján that seeks to penalize with fines pet owners who let their dogs bark after 6:00 pm,” the organization said on its social media on Tuesday.
According to the Animal Protection Community, the consequences of this“totally absurd” regulation (...) will be more abandonment and mistreatment of animals” in the Central American country.
“Barking is a natural act, so you cannot stop them from doing it, you cannot modulate it, but you can try to recognize why dogs bark and based on this take measures to calm them down,” the association adds.
The group Animal Rights Defenders Panama warned that“a dog's barking can vary in volume depending on the size, breed and temperament of the animal, but in general, it is estimated that dog barking usually reaches between 60 and 90 decibels (dB).”
“Even a Chihuahua's bark exceeds the limits they set, practically all of us who have pets at home would exceed the norm they impose,” can be read on social media.
Decree 08 of the Mayor of Arraiján establishes a total of 101 administrative violations. Some of them concern animals, such as the noise they may cause or also the“failure to show the chip, QR code, tag or the corresponding means that allows the identification and determination of the data of the animal, whether domestic or farmyard, including those of its owner”, which carries a fine of 500 dollars per animal.
“Failing to pick up the droppings of animals in your care” will result in a fine of $100 for the person responsible, according to Decree 08, which establishes further financial penalties for excessive noise caused by businesses or construction, and even fines of between $100 and $500 for“not carrying a valid identification document.”
Panamanian lawyer and congressman Ernesto Cedeño said on social media that the mayoral decree is“largely illegal” and called on the Panamanian Attorney General's Office to provide courses on local government because“this is getting out of control.”
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