Stray Dogs – Law and Drama

A four-year-old child has recently been brutally killed by stray dogs near a park in Bucharest. The tragedy has sparked the anger of public opinion in Bucharest, with the capital mayor Sorin Oprescu calling for a referendum to euthanize all unclaimed dogs

Leyla Cheamil, 05.09.2013, 14:29

Shocking news has yet again brought the issue of stray dogs to the media’s attention. A four-year-old kid died on Monday after being brutally attacked by a pack of stray dogs near a park in Bucharest, a place that, in theory, should present no danger. His seven-year-old brother managed to escape with only minor leg bites.

“The stray dogs acted on their animal instincts, which is to kill in order to feed”, the coroner who performed the autopsy has declared. He added that the little boy’s body presented hundreds of bite marks, his head was scalped and that he had died due to heavy external bleeding. But who is to blame for this unprecedented tragedy.

The authorities themselves seem to be at a loss. The only measures taken so far are fines applied to the administrator of the land where the regrettable accident occurred for not having a security plan in place and to the guard in charge with property surveillance for not being certified. Meanwhile the authorities have sacked the heads of the Bucharest District 2 Police Office and the General Directorate for Social Assistance and Child Protection.

Moreover, the investigation opened by the Bucharest Tribunal’s Prosecutor Office has been taken over by the Prosecutor General’s Office. Investigations are underway to ascertain who takes the blame for the death of the child. Bucharest City Mayor Sorin Oprescu has expressed his intention to hold a local referendum with respect to euthanizing all stray dogs, which may be held on the last Sunday of September or on the first of October. Sorin Oprescu argued that, although the law did limit the capabilities of local authorities in that respect, the people’s verdict might change the legislation in force.

Sorin Oprescu : “We have observed the law and did what we thought would produce a significant improvement. But instead here we are, proven wrong by this tragic course of events. I’m not willing to wait another moment until they decide to bring the matter to debate”.

On the other hand, the Government is trying to come up with the right solution, together with MPs and local authorities. The latter are referring to a legal vacuum as regards stray dogs, which nevertheless comes at odds with the recent statement of Bogdan Ciuca, the head of the Legal Committee of the Chamber of Deputies:

Bogdan Ciuca: “There is an emergency ordinance which clearly outlines the obligations and procedures linked to the capturing, housing and feeding of stray dogs and then to their sterilization, adoption and claim. The same ordinance clearly stipulates that unless a dog is adopted or claimed within seven days of its capture, it will be put to death”.

According to the last canine census, Bucharest is home to 64,000 stray dogs. Figures regarding dog populations in other cities such as Cluj and Constanta are still inaccurate.