Animal laws are a crucial and integral part in our bid to conserve and protect our environment which also encompasses our dearly loved beings called animals. In the prevailing legal status quo in our motherland there is existence of legislative provisions that protect animals but they are not comprehensive enough particularly on the notion of advancement of animal welfare and rights. Concise and precise animal legislative provisions have to be enacted so that we achieve sustainable levels of animal conservation and so that we also manage to legally lobby for the impartial advancement of animal rights and welfare. Animals are beings that deserve to be loved, cared for and be protected indiscriminately. There is need for the enactment of animal laws that are embedded on the protection of animals due to their intrinsic value rather than focusing only on their extrinsic value. The mantra of SOFA is “ They Can’t Speak But We Can” and this statement by its own virtue elicits that we have to become the voice of the voiceless and advocate for the protection, conservation and advancement of animal rights and welfare in our country. These animal laws need to be enforced so as to make sure that perpetrators of animal law violations are apprehended. Added to that, enforcement will also lead to the reduction of animal law violations cases and will also act as a deterrent to would be offenders.
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SOFA attends court cases on behalf of animals and act as an observer on behalf of interested parties to ensure that the process is conducted well and to bring just outcomes.
At the core of its objectives SOFA engages Universities, Local communities and schools with the aim of changing mindsets with regards to animal welfare. Noted herein below are some of the activities undertaken by our student chapters at Great Zimbabwe University and at University of Zimbabwe.
Animals can’t speak but we can be a voice for the voiceless.SOFA seeks to be instrumental in influencing a change in the legal landscape in Zimbabwe.
SOFA conducts introductory training in Animal Law to law students, graduates or lawyers interested in the field. Selected participants are awarded certificates. As a follow-up, SOFA conducts an in-depth training to equip the participants with the necessary legal knowledge so as to enable them to advocate for animal protection and welfare.
Human and wildlife conflicts have increased these past years and one cannot ignore the relation to the increase in population. The conflict between people and animals have been said to be one of the main threats to the continued survival of some species and also a significant threat to local human populations.
World Ranger Day is celebrated worldwide on the 31th of July, due to the 2018 Zimbabwean Elections the celebrations were held earlier in Masvingo province the province where one of SOFA’s Students Chapter is