Malaysian Bar says lack of a pet licence cannot justify animal cruelty or killing, urging authorities to comply with the Animal Welfare Act
PETALING JAYA: The lack of a pet licence cannot justify cruelty to or the killing of an animal, the Malaysian Bar said, urging enforcement authorities to comply with the Animal Welfare Act 2015 (AWA 2015) in all operations involving animals.
Its president Anand Raj said the death of Rocky, a dog killed during a stray-dog enforcement operation by the Klang Royal City Council (MBDK) in Klang on July 29, raised serious concerns over the enforcement of animal welfare laws.
He said Section 29 of the AWA 2015 made it an offence for any person, including enforcement authorities, to commit acts of violence or cruelty against an animal, regardless of whether the animal was licensed.
“The mere lack of a pet licence, ie, a piece of paper, cannot justify cruelty to, or the killing of, an animal,” the Malaysian Bar said in a statement today.
It said the killing of animals was prohibited under Section 30 of the AWA 2015, subject to limited exceptions, and that these provisions must guide how enforcement operations involving animals were planned and conducted.
The Malaysian Bar also expressed concern that the police investigation into Rocky’s death under Section 428 of the Penal Code, which deals with mischief by killing an animal, did not fully reflect the seriousness of animal cruelty.
It noted that the Selangor Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) was separately investigating the case under Section 29(1)(e) of the AWA 2015.
The Bar said relying solely on the Penal Code risked trivialising animal cruelty, as the provision treated an animal’s death as “mischief” against property, while the AWA 2015 specifically recognised animals as sentient creatures capable of suffering and provided stronger penalties to deter cruelty.
“AWA 2015 cannot be treated as mere surplusage,” it said.
The Malaysian Bar said the AWA 2015, being the latest and specific federal legislation governing animal welfare, must take precedence over any state law or subsidiary legislation that contradicted it, either in wording or intent.
It also pointed to the Federal Constitution, which places the prevention of cruelty to animals under the Concurrent List in the Ninth Schedule, giving both the Federal and state governments responsibility for preventing animal cruelty.
The Bar endorsed remarks by Selangor Tengku Permaisuri Hajah Norashikin on Aug 1 that cruelty against animals would not be tolerated regardless of who committed it, stressing that the principle applied equally to individuals, companies and government agencies.
“No one is above the law,” it said.
On enforcement procedures, the Malaysian Bar said local authorities must strictly comply with the existing standard operating procedure for the capture and disposal of stray dogs issued by the Housing and Local Government Ministry.
It said only approved methods, including the use of a loop, trap, net or tranquiliser gun with prior police and DVS approval, should be used to capture stray dogs.
The Bar called on local authorities and the ministry to ensure strict compliance with the SOP and impose clear consequences for breaches.
It also welcomed the Selangor Government’s commitment to review stray animal management SOPs across all local authorities, but said any review must be aligned with the AWA 2015.
The Bar further called for more humane, coordinated and data-driven approaches to managing stray animal populations.
It proposed that where an animal has an identifiable owner, authorities consider issuing an immediate summons instead of capturing, detaining and killing the animal, describing the latter approach as disproportionate and inconsistent with animal welfare requirements.
The Malaysian Bar called for a thorough, transparent and impartial investigation into Rocky’s death, with accountability imposed where warranted.
It also called for meaningful and lasting reforms to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
“The humanity (or cruelty) with which a society treats its pets and animals is a mark of its civilisation,” it said.
