In the wake of a new and shocking animal cruelty cases, rightist opposition Jobbik announced it wants a public referendum on the tightening of the Penal Code, so that animal torturers could easily be sentenced to jail time.
Jobbik has “had enough of Fidesz-KDNP voting down eight times in a row Jobbik’s initiatives about the tightening of the Penal Code for animal torture cases,” the party writes in its communique.
As a consequence, Jobbik has now decided to turn directly to the National Election Committee (NVB) to initiate a referendum. They hope that next year this referendum will decide that animal torturers will more easily receive jail time.
A recent case happened in downtown Vác, presumed to have driven Jobbik to take steps. A man was caught on the town’s surveillance cameras dragging an apparently unconscious dog on the streets. In addition, according to a local animal protection association, beforehand he also heavily beat up the dog, first with a belt then with his fists.
When he was stopped by local police the next day, he denied that he beat the dog “too hard” and argued that he only had to drag the animal on the streets because it “was faking” and “didn’t obey” him.
Police have since confirmed that they have launched a criminal investigation.
A few months ago plenty of animal cruelty cases were published and shocked the country, while it is well-known that most cases remain unknown forever. In most cases, courts sentence tormentors to suspended jail time or only order them to watch movies and read books about animals.