In the United States, the Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that elephants are not legally considered people. The court rejected a plea by an animal rights group to shift five elephants from a zoo to a sanctuary.
An animal rights organization, the Non-Human Rights Project (NHRP), argued that the elephants Macy, Kumba, Lucky, Lulu, and Jumbo were held against their will at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. The NHRP wanted the zoo to relocate the animals to a more suitable environment.
Group filed Habeas corpus Petition, which is a legal tool used to challenge illegal detention. The NHRP claimed that elephants have a right to freedom because of their emotional and cognitive capacities.
However, the court unanimously ruled that habeas corpus applies to humans, not just animals, “It doesn’t matter how cognitively, psychologically, or socially sophisticated they are.
The NRP criticized the decision, calling it an ongoing injustice. The group compared their fight to other social justice movements that faced setbacks before achieving change.
A similar NRP case involving an elephant named Happy at the Bronx Zoo in New York was also dismissed. Then, the court also ruled that Hathi Khush was not legally a person.
“As with other social justice movements, initial losses are expected as we challenge a status quo that has subjected Miss, Kumba, Lucky, Lulu, and Jumbo to a lifetime of mental and physical suffering. Allowed.” said.
Answer Chine Mountain Zoo
“While we are pleased with this outcome, we are disappointed that it ever came to this,” the zoo said in a statement. statement.
“Some of our supporters were surprised that the NHRP chose to attack, of all” places, the Chine Mountain Zoo. We consistently rank as a top five zoo in the nation by popular vote, the zoo added.
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