Argentina

Summary: This law declared the Panthera onca, also known as yaguareté, Jaguar, overo tiger or painted onca, a natural monument. Ley 25.463/01 instructs the National Park Administration and the Directorate of Wildlife and Flora of the Nation to work together on the management plan for the species in the areas of its jurisdiction, making sure it is in accordance to the national faunal policy. The Enforcement Authority will guarantee the planning and execution of preventive measures in cases in which a specimen becomes circumstantially harmful to humans or their productive activities.

Summary: Ley 25.052/98 prohibits the hunt or capture of orca whales (Orcinus orca) by nets or by the forced stranding system. The penalty for violating this law will result in fines starting from one million Argentine pesos, and up to two million pesos when the capture resulted in the death of the specimen. The Secretary of Natural Resources, through the Direction of Ictícolas and Acuícolas Resources, are the authorities in charge of the application of this law. The Naval Prefecture of Argentina is the authority that exercises police power, and federal justice will know of the complaints made by the enforcement authority, the police authority, or any citizen or non-governmental institution.

Summary: Ley Nº 24.702 establishes that various species of andean deer will be declared natural monuments. This species correspond to: Hippocamelus bisulcus (huemul, güemul or guamul (araucano); shoan, shoam or shonen (tehuelche), Andean deer, southern huemul, trula or trulá, Chilean huemul, hueque, deer (southern Patagonia) and Hippocamelus antisensis (tarusch, taruga, taruka or chacu (quichua), deer, northern or northern huemul, huemul, fallow deer, cerrero deer, huemul cordillerano, huemul peruano, peñera). Ley Nº 24.702, also instructs the National Park Administration and the Directorate of Wildlife and Flora of the Nation to work together on the management plan for the species in the areas of its jurisdiction, making sure it is in accordance to the national faunal policy.

Summary: Ley 23.899, 1990 creates the National Service of Animal Health, and establishes its purposes, responsibilities and organization. According to this law, The National Service of Animal Health executes governmental policy on animal health. The main purpose of NSAH is to prevent, control and eradicate animal diseases and animal diseases transmissible to humans, to exercise hygienic-sanitary control of all products of animal origin, taking into account the advances in health technology and the most modern procedures for its control and the control of the products destined to the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of animal diseases. This entity is formed by an executive structure; a board of directors and provincial or regional commissions. The National Service of Animal is an entity of public private law with National scope, that maintains its relations with the national government through the Undersecretariat of Agriculture, Livestock and Fishing of the Nation.

Summary: This law declares the southern right whale a natural monument within Argentine jurisdictional waters and subject to the rules established by Law No. 22.351, which regulates the concerning procedures for the declaration of national parks, natural monuments, and national reserves.

Summary: This law seeks to protect animals against mIstreatment and cruel acts. Mistreatment are cruel acts and considered criminal offenses, which can be punished from 15 days to 1 year in prison. Article 2 of this law establishes the acts considered mistreatment, which includes not feeding domestic and captive animals with food in enough quantity and quality. Also included are the acts of forcing animals to work excessive hours without providing adequate rest according to the weather and stimulating them with drugs without pursuing therapeutic purposes, among others. Article 3 defines acts that are considered cruel. These acts include practicing vivisection for purposes that are not scientifically demonstrable, or in places or by people who are not authorized to operate on animals without anesthesia and without the title of doctor or veterinarian, except in cases of emergency. In addition, cruelty includes: mutilating any part of the body of an animal unless the action has purposes of improvement; marking of the respective animal species unless performed for reasons of mercy; performing public or private acts of animal fights, bullfights and parodies where animals are killed, injured or harassed; and other listed acts.