German Parliament Votes to Give Animals Constitutional Rights

Germany yesterday became the first country in the European Union to grant constitutional rights to its animals. The move was welcomed by vets and animal rights groups, but the scientific research lobby called yesterday "Black Friday".

With a vote to insert just three words - "und die Tiere" ("and the animals") - into the highest law of the land, parliamentarians effectively ordered the state to protect "the natural foundations of life" for animals as well as humans.

The change was not expected to lead to any immediate extension of the protection that is afforded to animals by Germany's existing laws. But the new wording will have to be taken into account by parliament when framing new laws and by the officials and judges who apply and interpret the existing legislation.

From now on, the federal constitutional court will have to weigh animal rights against such factors as society's requirement for scientific research and the right to freedom of religion. This could translate into tighter restrictions on the use of animals for testing cosmetics or non-prescription drugs. It also appeared to put a question mark over a recent decision to allow butchers to practise ritual Muslim slaughter of animals.

Renate Knast, the agriculture minister and a member of the Green party, which campaigned for the reform, stressed that it did not give animals equal rights with humans. But, in a remark that will be viewed as ominous by researchers and many in the farming and food industries, she added: "Work is not stopping. It is just beginning".

The German Health and Research Society, which represents the interests of many laboratories that use animals for testing, said parliament's decision could lead to considerable legislative uncertainty.

The Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, voted by 543 to 19 with 15 abstentions in favour of the amendment. Its decision followed 10 years of parliamentary debate and three failed attempts to alter the constitution.

Earlier initiatives had run up against opposition in the Christian Democrat party that critics argued was rooted in its closeness to the farming lobby. But the right's candidate in this year's general election, Edmund Stoiber, favoured a change in the law and his influence appears to have been decisive in securing approval among Christian Democrats.

It also won approval from a majority of MPs in the smaller Free Democrat party. One of its representatives in parliament, Rainer Funker, said after the vote: "This is not just a good day for animal protection, but also for humanity".