03/03/2017

On the occasion of the World WildLife Day, the international nature’s day organized by the United Nations, the associations ENPA, Il Rifugio degli asinelli, Italian Horse Protection, LAV, Legambiente, Lega nazionale per la difesa del cane, Lipu-BirdLife Italia, Rete dei santuari di animali liberi in Italia, WWF Italia wrote this morning to the President of the Council of Ministers Paolo Gentiloni, to the Minister of the Environment and Protection of Land and Sea Gian Luca Galletti, to the Minister of Health Beatrice Lorenzin and to the President of the Conference of Regions and autonomous Provinces Stefano Bonaccini sending them the "Charter of Rome" for the not for profit recovery of rescued animals, just signed by the representatives of the nine associations.
Carla Rocchi, national president of ENPA, Barbara Massa, national director of Il RIFUGIO degli ASINELLI, Sonny Richichi, national president of Italian Horse Protection, Gianluca Felicetti, national president of LAV, Rossella Muroni, national president  of LEGAMBIENTE, Michele Pezone, responsible for animal rights of LEGA NAZIONALE per la DIFESA del CANE, Fulvio Mamone Capria, national president  of Lipu-BirdLife Italia, Patrizia Fantilli, legal director of WWF Italia met at one of the many structures existing in Italy, the Wildlife Rescue Centre in Rome, managed by Lipu BirdLife, which daily suffers the lack of legislation, the delays and the chronic lack of economic resources by competent institutions.

The signatories denounce the improper delay of which the State is responsible regarding care, protection and management of the animals. They underline the urgency to overcome this situation and ask for a meeting in order to discuss the actions proposed in the Charter. The aim is to create a national Action Plan to adequately deal with the enormous animal suffering caused by illegality and criminality.
The signatories say: “A new regulatory framework is necessary to ensure the recognition and promotion of animal rescue centers and sanctuaries, and to protect them as a matter of collective interest”.
The Criminal Code, international treaties, EU directives and laws on trafficking of exotic animals, wildlife, experimentation, circuses, zoos and pets provide for specific commitments by the State to protect wild and domestic animals. The State has undertaken for several years the cultural commitment and obligation to care for them directly or indirectly.
These commitments, however, are largely unmet: they have not been translated into specific regulations on structures, authorization procedures, methods of reception, adoption and maintenance of the animals, nor into adequate funding.
In the meantime, the number of animals seized and confiscated has strongly increased over the past decade. The data provided by the Public Prosecutors indicate that in 2013 more than 8,000 files were opened in Italy only for maltreatment; among these, it was estimated that  at least 27 thousand were seized animals, while, for the same year, according to the data of the Veterinary Services of Health Authorities it is estimated not less than 25 thousand wild animals admitted in different structures.
In some cases, the State preferred to put the animals back into the commercial circuit of exploitation from which they had just been taken away, in open contrast to the protective legislation that the State itself should apply. There is the example of wild allochthonous (exotic) animals confiscated from circuses and for the most part relocated in zoos or the case of farm animals seized and then given to other livestock farms for production. Or it still happens that animals, once seized, are left to investigated people due to lack of shelter facilities..