Executive Summary

Since it first introduced the Animal Protection Act (2017), Korea has been proactive in continuing improvements to the law, ensuring that animal welfare is protected in the country. The Act enshrines the Five Freedoms, places a duty of care towards animals on owners, local authorities and the general Korean population. There is a recognition across animal-related legislation that animals feel pain and can suffer, and it is mandated that steps be taken to prevent any unnecessary pain and suffering. Some jurisdictions in the country, for example Seoul, should be commended on their commitment to animal welfare with their local schemes to reduce stray animal populations and to end the trade in dog meat.

While the Animal Protection Act (2017) has continued to improve, its application can still be unclear due to contradicting definitions of animals in other legislation. This is a common theme across animal-related legislation in Korea. For example, the Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act (2016) and the Livestock Industry Act (2017) include different species in their definition of “livestock.” Similarly, it is unclear how the protections enshrined in the Animal Protection Act (2017), such as the Five Freedoms, are applied in relation to farm animals. Reports suggest that battery cages are widely used for chickens, and that small cage sizes result in an inability for chickens to achieve several of the Five Freedoms stipulated by law.
 
The Animal Protection Act (2017) established an animal welfare committee, under the Ministry of Agriculture, which is required to develop and implement a national animal welfare plan every five years. However, legislation for wildlife and marine animals, assigns responsibility for their care to the Ministry of Environment. Similarly, while the Animal Protection Act (2017) mandates treatment for animals in testing, the responsibility for their care is assigned to the Ministry for Food and Drug Safety.
 
Since 2014 and the previous iteration of the Animal Protection Index, the Government of Korea has made amendments to many pieces of legislation that impact animal welfare. This suggests a strong political will to ensure high animal welfare standards in the country.

The Government of Korea is recommended to align all animal welfare matters under one government ministry with the human and financial resources for research, policy development, public education and enforcement. Further legal and policy recommendations are associated with each Animal Protection Indicator (API) indicator and contained in the relevant sections of this report.