After being passed by a subcommittee, amendments to an animal protection bill that sparked a fierce debate over the fate of stray dogs are now before Parliament.
The General Assembly of Parliament is expected to make a final decision on the bill later on Monday. Critics of the bill claim it seeks to indiscriminately cull the canine population, while proponents argue its necessity amid rising fatal attacks by aggressive dogs, especially on children and the elderly.
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leads efforts to block the bill approved by the subcommittee recently. CHP lawmakers’ attitude toward families of dog attack victims during the earlier debate at Parliament and controversial demonstrations by a group calling themselves "animal rights activists" at Parliament drew the ire of the government. Parliament will be closed to visitors during the debate on amendments and other bills this week.
The amendments are expected to be approved by Parliament before it starts its summer recess in August. If approved, it will be presented to the Presidency for final approval and implementation.
Colloquially known as the "stray animals bill," the 17-article proposal by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) includes an article that calls to euthanize dogs that are in pain, terminally ill, posing a public health risk or too aggressive to be controlled. The term was removed in the final draft of the bill.
AK Party Chairperson President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan defended the bill while lashing out at the opposition for exploiting the issue. In a speech last Wednesday, Erdoğan said the bill helps Türkiye keep streets safer for people amid growing dog attacks.
AK Party wields the majority in Parliament together with its ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). AK Party spokesperson Ömer Çelik last Tuesday lamented that the critics portrayed the bill as something that would pave the way for "massacres." "This is a matter hurting people. Children are attacked, and elderly people are attacked. It is unfair to say that this is a bill for massacres. This is a bill for which we sought input from everyone. We cannot accept (dog) attacks on people," he said.
President Erdoğan, a dog owner himself, has pointed out the risk of stray dogs, estimated to be around 4 million, in a speech in May. He also warned about the escalating risk of rabies, something that pushed Britain to issue a travel advisory against Türkiye. The president, who is the architect of two unprecedented animal welfare bills enacted in 2004 and 2021, has acknowledged that they failed to tackle the stray dog issue through the "catch-neuter-release" method and that a better solution is needed.
Erdoğan reiterated the risk in a speech on Wednesday. As he addressed parliamentarians at his party's group meeting, he said the nation expected a "solution" to the issue. The president said this was a matter that could not be ignored just because the opposition and some media outlets opposed it. "We only hear the expectation of our nation. Though some people tend to ignore it, Türkiye has a stray dog issue. We have a stray dog population you cannot see anywhere else in the world. These stray dogs attack children, people in general, and other animals. They also cause traffic accidents," Erdoğan stated.
Along with direct attacks on humans, dogs are blamed for several deadly traffic accidents where drivers steer off the road to avoid hitting canines suddenly jumping off the streets.
The bill mandates municipalities collect the stray dogs and house them in shelters where they would be neutered and spayed. Though it does not directly cite "euthanasia," it calls for the implementation of an existing article in Turkish laws for euthanizing feral dogs under the supervision of a vet. Municipalities would also be required to build dog shelters or improve conditions in existing shelters by 2028. Mayors who fail to meet their responsibilities in controlling stray dogs would face imprisonment ranging from six months to two years. Additionally, fines imposed on people who abandon their pets would be raised from TL 2,000 ($60) to TL 60,000 ($1,800).
Murat Pınar, who heads an association that has campaigned for measures to keep the streets safe from stray dogs, said at least 75 people, including 44 children, have been killed as a result of attacks or traffic accidents caused by dogs since 2022 – the year his 9-year-old daughter, Mahra, was run over by a truck after she fled from two aggressive dogs.
Pınar's "Safe Streets and Defense of the Right to Life Association” calls for removing all strays from the streets and wants the legislation to pass before the summer recess in August. On the first day of the debate last week, Mahra’s mother brandished her daughter's shoe, alleging that opposition lawmakers prioritize the lives of dogs over those of children.
Dogs and cats are ubiquitous on Turkish streets and often fed by locals, leading to a rise in their population. Stray dogs have been mostly harmless until the past few years when they started wandering in packs and occasionally chasing away people.
