Helping animals speak up: Switzerland was the first country to give constitutional rights to animals, and so it seems fitting that it is home to the world's one and only animal lawyer. Swiss News caught up with Antoine Goetschel in Zurich.
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If its constitution is to be believed, no one takes animal rights as seriously as Switzerland. The concept of animal rights has been enshrined in the nation's basic law since 1992, a worldwide first.
Shortly thereafter, Canton Zurich took a further huge step for 'animal kind' and established a position for a lawyer to protect animal rights. This public official is the best friend of man's best friends when it comes to criminal cases involving animal abuse.
Recently, the position was filled by Antoine Goetschel, who actively worked to enshrine the dignity and rights of animals in the Swiss Constitution in 1992.
He is only the third lawyer to take on the job, replacing his former colleague, Markus Raess, who stepped down in October 2007, after 14 years.
Animal lawyer at large
The dapper 49-year-old took up the post in November 2007 and has more than 20 years' experience as a lawyer. He devotes 20 per cent of his time to ethics and animal rights, while the rest is spent practising inheritance, foundation and marital law.
As the animal attorney, Goetschel is entrusted with protecting the animal's interests in criminal cases in his home canton. This means that, on a technical level, he has unfettered access to court documents and may examine witnesses and appeal judgements and sentences.
"I am dealing with about 100 cases in Canton Zurich at the moment. About 74 per cent of the cases deal with dogs and cats," but pets are by no means alone, Goetschel says.
Farm animals also suffer neglect and abuse, albeit in smaller numbers.
"I have seen some cases where farmers are so overwhelmed by their duties that they not only neglect their animals but also their wives [and] their children. They are just not able to cope with life," Goetschel says.
By international standards, Switzerland appears to be about average when it comes to the incidence of animal abuse, the lawyer adds. "We have about the same number of cases and the same kind of abuse as in Europe and North America."
And does Switzerland have a better track record in enforcement than other countries, given that it is a pioneer when it comes to animal rights? Goetsehel's response is mixed.
"Yes and no. Several cantons are taking their role in improving animal welfare seriously, but other cantons do not give any priority to animal welfare. The latter have not had any animal welfare [criminal] cases in the last 25 years and this is strange," he says.
Good attitudes
However...
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