"License to kill" or public safety? Turkey's controversial stray dog law
In Turkey, a new law passed in the summer of 2024 risks leading to mass euthanasia for stray animals, and street dogs in particular. Although the country has a strong tradition of cohabitation with street animals, this will revive memories of the massacre on the island of Maudite, where some 80,000 dogs were deported and left to their fate in 1910. Yet other approaches, such as sterilization and/or adoption, would be more humane.
Bernur Açıkgöz, Katip Celebi University and Marc Willinger, University of Montpellier
In Turkey, a new law passed in the summer of 2024 provides for the capture of stray animals, particularly street dogs, in order to curb their proliferation. The law provides for their placement in shelters and the systematic euthanasia of animals deemed dangerous, particularly sick animals or those with "negative" behavior .
This law raises major animal welfare and public safety concerns: it risks leading to the mass slaughter of animals, at a time when more humane solutions exist, such as animal sterilization and adoption campaigns. If we compare this law with the animal welfare standards of the European Union, it is clear that Turkey should consider a more inclusive reform.
Yet Turkey has a long-standing tradition of cohabitation with street animals. Since Ottoman times, stray animals have been an integral part of Turkey's social and cultural fabric: people feed them, build shelters for them and share urban spaces with them. This peaceful tradition continues today in many towns and villages, contributing to the well-being of these animals.
The fate of stray animals is a sensitive subject here: in 1910, under the Ottoman Empire, the island of Sivriada (also known as Cursed Island) was used to exile stray dogs from Istanbul. Over 80,000 dogs were rounded up and abandoned on this deserted island.
The death of the dogs from hunger and thirst aroused great public indignation, and the event was remembered as both a moral and practical failure, leaving a deep scar on people's consciences. Indeed, the public associated some of the catastrophes that followed, such as earthquakes and wars, with the "curse of the dogs".
A memory that the new legislation on stray dogs in Turkey has revived, against a backdrop of humanitarian and ethical debate.
The new law, a short-term "solution
One of the main reasons behind the adoption of this new law in Turkey is the increase in the number of stray dogs and the growing fear of dogs among part of the population. Dogs cause traffic accidents and can carry dangerous diseases such as rabies.
The old law, Article 6 of Law no. 5199 on animal protection, obliged municipalities to sterilize, vaccinate, treat and release stray animals in their place of origin. However, municipalities failed to fulfill this mission, and, due to insufficient sterilization, dog populations continued to grow. The new law, which allows the capture and euthanasia of unadopted dogs, aims to remedy this situation.
Although this law seems to meet an urgent need for public safety, it is unlikely to be a humane solution in the long term. Indeed, no municipality in Turkey currently has the infrastructure to house these animals. According to Turkish media reports, some municipalities have started poisoning dogs because of the lack of space in shelters. In rural and some urban areas, this law has already led to animal massacres.
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Thus, the new law obliges municipalities to capture and confine animals, but without providing them with adequate infrastructure. This law therefore offers only a short-term solution, while neglecting any consideration of animal welfare in the long term.
Sterilization, adoption... more sustainable solutions
If this law remains in force, it is to be feared that animal massacres will multiply, engaging the responsibility of municipalities and central government alike. To reconcile animal welfare and public safety, the government should reassess the consequences of this law and consider alternatives.
To deal with stray animals in Turkey, policy adjustments could have been considered even before implementing such a law. They would have made it possible to preserve habits of cohabitation with street animals, while striking a better balance between public safety and respect for animal rights.
- Firstly, the question of shelters to house captured strays: at the very least, safe areas should have been defined where the animals could have stayed while waiting for suitable infrastructures to be built.
- Although the sale of animals in pet shops has been banned, breeding and sale on unregulated farms continues, contributing to an increase in the number of strays.
- What's more, pets can still be imported by international travelers.
- Certain existing laws, such as those prohibiting the keeping of animals in condominiums, could have been re-evaluated to encourage the adoption of dogs in Turkey.
- Sterilization campaigns could reduce the number of dogs, while adoption campaigns would encourage the public to care for these animals and raise awareness of animal rights.
- Even in the absence of mass adoptions, municipalities could invest in sterilization centers to enable animals, once vaccinated and sterilized, to return to their areas of origin after treatment.
Drawing inspiration from the European Union
In the European Union, as in Sweden and Germany, political measures have considerably reduced the number of stray animals.
In France, the law on the protection and welfare of animals includes serious measures to protect stray animals and prohibits their abandonment. Animal welfare violations are severely punished, and shelters and adoption programs are set up to rehabilitate stray animals.
European Parliament Directive 98/58/EC prohibits unnecessary euthanasia and obliges member states to adopt animal protection policies. Article 13 of the Lisbon Treaty recognizes dogs as "sentient beings" and stresses the need to protect their rights.
By implementing similar programs, Turkey could bring stray animal populations under control. It would be useful if mobilization against the new law were to extend internationally, and particularly in Europe: organizations like Eurogroup for Animal could offer financial and technical support to sterilization and adoption projects in Turkey.
Ultimately, this new law, while aimed at boosting public safety in the short term, seriously jeopardizes animal welfare and social harmony in the long term in terms of peaceful cohabitation with these animals. It would be advisable to repeal this law and replace it with more inclusive and humane legislation, drawing inspiration from the animal welfare standards in force in the European Union.
In 1789, the English philosopher Jeremy Bentham himself wrote:
"What [...] criterion should mark the unbridgeable line? Is it the ability to reason, or perhaps the ability to talk? But an adult horse or dog is an incomparably more rational animal, and also more talkative, than a child of a day, or a week, or even a month. But if they weren't, what would it matter?
The question is not: can they reason? nor: can they speak? but: can they suffer?"
Bernur Açıkgöz, Professor of Economics, Katip Celebi University and Marc Willinger, Professor of Economics, Behavioral and Experimental Economics, University of Montpellier
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read theoriginal article.