Animal Activist Protests: A Legal Analysis of Activism in Australia

This essay critically analyzes animal activist protests in Australia, focusing on the legal and ethical dimensions of activism. It examines the role of groups like Aussie Farms and the legal ramifications of their actions, particularly in light of the Agricultural Protection Bill, 2019. The essay explores the application of legal theories such as natural and realist law in the context of farm trespass, property damage, and the protection of farmers' rights. It evaluates the impact of these protests on society, the economy, and the ethical considerations surrounding animal rights. The analysis incorporates various sources, including news articles, legal journals, and government publications, to provide a comprehensive understanding of the issue. The essay concludes by highlighting the complexities of balancing animal rights advocacy with legal and economic considerations, emphasizing the need for ethical and lawful practices by activist groups.

ANIMAL ACTIVIST PROTESTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................3

INTRODUCTION
Animal activist protesters are individuals or groups that raise their voice against violence
and animal slaughter by protesting and indulging in other activities to gain the attention of
general public. In order to protect the animals and ensure their safety, there are several activist
groups set up in Australia. This is generally done by an Australian group called Aussie farms
repository where they conduct raids and protests on streets, farms and many other public places
in the country. The current essay will emphasize critical analysis of animal activist protest with
the help of legal theories implemented on the basis of nature, system, institution and role towards
the society. The essay follows natural and realist law theory.
MAIN BODY
A study was conducted on animal activist crackdown looms after the parliament
researched and passed a farm trespass law, it was identified that the main reason behind
passing of (Agricultural Protection) Bill, 2019 is to protect the farmers and other individuals
involved in animal slaughter and killing. Aussie farms used illegal ways to protest against these
farmers by causing damage to their property and their health and safety as well. Recently, the
Aussie farms organization developed a world map that stated the location of all the slaughter
houses and other animal exploitation facilities1. The charity group aims to raid all these potential
slaughterhouses and remove them from their roots. Their mission is to protect the animals and
promote the culture of veganism not just in Australia but all around the world. It is backup by
natural theory as it focuses on wellbeing of individuals and animals.
Australia is a major producer of lamb and beef and the country exports it to countries like
USA, Japan, Korea and China so banning of these slaughterhouses and farms is not a feasible
option for the country. Moreover, it would also lead to unemployment and economic crisis
throughout the nation.
1
Karp, P., 2019. Animal rights group Aussie Farms faces crackdown after nationwide
protests [Online]. Available through: <
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/apr/08/animal-rights-group-aussie-
farms-faces-crackdown-after-protests>.
1

In accordance with natural theory as it focuses on wellbeing of individuals and animals.
Natural theory states that morality is the most important thing and no animal or living being must
be harmed. It also states that humanity and nature come before government laws, thus it supports
the trespassing of animal activists.
The Summary Offenses Act 2005 (Queensland), ensures that members of society must
lawfully use and pass through public places without intervening or trespassing their property. In
case a person commits such an offense then they might face 10 penalty units or a 6-month
imprisonment.
Study of 2 was based on Protests conducted by vegans against the local farmers of
Australia, where scholar identified that the main motive behind protests in Australia were that
vegans trespassed the farms and caused damage to the property and as a result the farmers called
the police when they found out that their property were being trespassed and damaged by some
group of people and on the basis of this law, the police officers arrested these 11 vegan activists
in Queensland. Furthermore, the officers also pressed other charges on them like malicious
damage, trespassing and animal cruelty, claiming that the activists caused death of several birds
by breaking in the farms.
In addition, it is the actions of vegan activist group have started causing harm to the
people and therefore it had become essential for the Australian government to come up with
certain legal rules and regulations. Bianca Hall and Benjamin Preiss, outlined about the Morrison
government and how they recently presented new legislation to respond to protests by activist of
animal rights in Australia. The bill is called The Criminal Code Amendment (Agricultural
Protection) Bill, 2019 and it was established to protect the rights of farmers by creating strict
penalties for those who provoke people to trespass on farms or private properties of any
individual. It is supported by realist theory as it focuses on real life situations, politics and
economy of the country3.
2 Livia Albeck Ripka, 2019.Protests in Australia Pit Vegans against farmers. The New York Times
3 Vegan Activist OK with Breaking 'Unjust' Laws. 2019. [Online]. Available through: <
https://10daily.com.au/news/politics/a190812mxktj/vegan-activist-ok-with-breaking-
unjust-laws-20190812>.
2

Chris Delforce, the man behind controversial animal protection group called Aussie
farms stated to the media that their group was against the slaughter houses and other gas
chambers that are used to kill the animals and also mentioned that their group would keep
working on the mission of making farming more transparent4.
On the other hand, the Australian government also implemented a fine of $440,000 for
groups and $220,000 for individuals that tried to trespass and attack the farms and further invade
their privacy. The bill was passed on August 1, 2019.
The following article is proved through realist theory and it suggests that any activity
performed by group of people is considered to be illegal if it harms the interests, breaches the
privacy of citizens or damages their property.
5 outlined about moral scope and the ways to identify non-human animals where,
scholar mentioned that many people and government officers criticizes the activists group by
saying that their intention was good but the way of doing was wrong both ethically and legally
and as a result the (Agricultural Protection) bill was passed in the court of law. The above
statement is true as per the natural theory as it has focused on human morality and ethics. The
article is in reference to realist law theory as it states that national interest is the most important
aspect for any country and all the decisions taken by government must be motivated by national
importance.
The government's main motive behind passing this law is not to protect farmers' privacy
and security but to protect the production and slaughter houses as they contribute towards the
country's growth through exports. Also, the agriculture industry in Australia is valued at $60
billion making it one of the most important aspects if their economy.
These laws are very important to protect the farmers and their small businesses from
property damage, trespassing, breach of security and loss of income. If the charity organization
fails to follow this legislation then they might face up to 5 years of imprisonment with $2.1
4 Wahlquist, C., 2019. 'Mushy-headed vegans': WA may introduce restraining orders to
curb animal activism. [Online]. Available through: <
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/may/23/mushy-headed-vegans-wa-
may-introduce-restraining-orders-to-curb-animal-activism>.
5 D'Amelio, S., 2018. Animal law: The moral scope of legal personality: The case to recognise nonhuman
animals. LSJ: Law Society of NSW Journal, (43), p.74.
3

million of for breach of act. It also includes exemption of journalists and other whistle blowers
who exposes instances of animal slaughter and cruelty.
According to legal theories, the it is important to justify the role and impact of this law on
society. First of all, the passing of Agricultural Protection Bill, 2019 has proved to beneficial for
the farmers and other livestock traders as it has allowed them to work with more efficiency and
has given them security and legal assurance regarding the protection of their farms and privacy.
Almost 90% of Australian citizens consume meat and beef in their diets therefore it is
practically impossible to force veganism on them.
On the other hand, animal slaughter has also been criticized heavily and it is ethically
wrong to slaughter any living beings. It is considered to be a cruel activity by many people and
organizations all around the world. PETA is an American not for profit organization that was
established in the year 1980 with the sole purpose of protecting them from slaughtering and
hunting. As of 2019, the group has around 6.5 million members all around the world.
Moreover, killing of animals can have adverse effects on the environment as well because
it causes acid rain, land and water degradation and deforestation.
The passing of Agricultural Protection Bill, 2019 was a positive move by the
government in order to protect the livelihood and privacy of these farmers because the forceful
ideology of Aussie farm repository could have been dangerous for the economy of the country6.
Thus, it can be concluded that no organization or charity must forcefully impose their
beliefs on to other people by using unethical and illegal practices like trespassing, breach of
privacy, damage to property otherwise they will have to face legal consequences.
6 It isn’t clear how the new bill against animal rights activists will protect farmers. 2019.
[Online]. Available through: < https://theconversation.com/it-isnt-clear-how-the-new-
bill-against-animal-rights-activists-will-protect-farmers-120588>.
4

LEGAL RESEARCH DIARY
Additional Source 1 Livia Albeck Ripka, 2019.Protests in Australia Pit Vegans against
farmers. The New York Times. DOI: <
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/10/world/australia/vegans-protest-
farms.html>
Additional Source 2 Bianca Hall and Benjamin Preiss, 2019. Animal activist crackdown
looms as parliament probes farm trespass law. The Age, pp.51. DOI: <
theage.com.au/politics/victoria/animal-activist-crackdown-looms-as-
parliament-probes-farm-trespass-law-20190501-p51j1q.html >
Additional Source 3 D'Amelio, S., 2018. Animal law: The moral scope of legal personality:
The case to recognise non-human animals. LSJ: Law Society of NSW
Journal, (43), p.74.
Which of these 3
sources are you
critically evaluating?
D'Amelio, S., 2018. Animal law: The moral scope of legal personality:
The case to recognise nonhuman animals. LSJ: Law Society of NSW
Journal, (43), p.74. DOI:
Critically evaluate
the relevance and
reliability of that
source.
It is imperative for a source to be reliable as well as relevant mainly because
without relevancy there is no need of that source and without reliability the
source is of no use. The moral scope of legal personality related information:
The case to recognise non-human animals were relevant to the essay and it was
adapted from Law Society of NSW Journal and the article was written by
Stephanie D'Amelio. Also, the article was published in the year 2018 which has
made it even more authentic.
5

Methodology used to
identify the source
and the screenshots
of the searches
performed.
Google scholar < https://lsj.com.au/articles/the-moral-scope-of-legal-
personality-the-case-to-recognise-nonhuman-animals/>
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
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