FROM WELFARE TO PROTECTION
A PARADIGM SHIFT THAT RECOGNISES REAL SENTIENCE
WHAT THIS CAMPAIGN IS ABOUT
The traditional animal welfare model regulates how animals are used. It asks how much harm is acceptable — instead of how harm can be prevented.
Animal protection is different. It recognises animals as sentient beings with intrinsic value and places their protection at the centre of law, policy, and enforcement.
This campaign calls for:
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prevention, not reaction
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accountability, not improvisation
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systems that protect animals before harm occurs
WHY THE CURRENT SYSTEM IS FAILING
Despite existing legislation, animals continue to suffer because the system lacks:
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clear accountability
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trained and specialised enforcement
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adequate infrastructure
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institutional coordination
Animals wait.
Cases stall.
Enforcement is inconsistent.
When systems struggle, the response is too often to search for quick, temporary fixes.Quick fixes do not help animals. Systems do.
STRUCTURAL FAILURES EXPOSED
When urgent intervention was required, protection depended on improvised arrangements rather than a system designed to act decisively and lawfully.
In the absence of national infrastructure, emergency outcomes have relied on ad-hoc solutions rather than planned, state-led protection mechanisms.
But emergency measures are not protection.
They are a last resort when systems fail.
Recent cases involving lions kept in poor conditions in Naxxar exposed a critical national gap: Malta has no confiscation or holding facilities for wild/exotic animals.
A CAMPAIGN GROUNDED IN STRUCTURAL REFORM
This campaign is directly linked to a comprehensive reform proposal developed by Vuċi għall-Annimali.
The report analyses Malta’s animal governance framework and identifies why repeated crises continue to emerge despite existing laws.
"The most urgent failure is not a lack of legislation, but a lack of infrastructure, capacity, and institutional design to enforce protection effectively."
WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE
Across Europe and beyond, countries are increasingly recognising:
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animal sentience
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dignity
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protection as guiding legal principles
Malta is not starting from zero. But without a deliberate structural reset, it will continue reacting to crises instead of preventing them.
FROM CAMPAIGN TO ACTION
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
This campaign invites policymakers, professionals, NGOs, and the public to engage seriously with the changes required.
Vuċi għall-Annimali has:
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formally submitted its reform proposals to relevant authorities
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launched this national awareness campaign
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convened a national animal welfare conference to discuss the proposals
