Animal rights advocates are celebrating a move by the Italian parliament on Wednesday to, over the next year, phase out the use of all animals in circuses and traveling shows.
"Italy has an estimated 100 circuses with some 2,000 animals making this one of the biggest victories in the campaign to stop circus suffering," according to Animal Defenders International's Stop Circus Suffering campaign. The European nation joins 40 other countries and several more municipalities that have outlawed the use of animals in circuses and traveling shows.
from EcoWatch
The circus in old Italy
Is now gonna be critter-free.
No lions or bears --
And so empty chairs
Are all the clowns likely will see. Editor's Note: The story above appears to be an egregious example of 'fake news' by an organization with an agenda to peddle. From our Italian correspondent we have this explanation and update:
Raffaele de Ritis The exact quote in Italian is: “graduale superamento dell’utilizzo degli animali nello svolgimento delle attività circensi e dello spettacolo viaggiante”. In English is" gradual overcoming of the use of animals during the activites of circus and travelling entertainment". Nothing else. Not specified how and when. And the document is not a law about circus. It is a single line about circus within a 50-pages law about performing arts. It is a quite bizarre statement, but was a safe "italian way" to politically balance the interests of circus community and of the animal right movements as well. It says all and nothing. While being effectively a law, this is not at all a prohibition but an adress. Beside the symbolic value, negative for circus, it changes nothing. Italian circuses can continue to keep their animals.
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