Spain Could Be First Country to Grant Rights to Nonhumans
by Mat Thomas, In Defense of Animals

Francisco Garrido, a bioethicist and Green MP representing Seville, recently introduced a resolution into the Spanish parliament that seeks to extend the basic rights of personhood—life, freedom and protection from torture—to chimpanzees, orangutans, bonobos and gorillas. The resolution enjoys widespread support among both the public and many government officials, and is expected to be approved when it comes up for a vote. Garrido also hopes that a full-fledged Great Apes Law will soon follow whose passage would make Spain the first country in the world to grant rights to nonhumans. 

This could have revolutionary implications not only for great apes in Spain but also around the world. A Great Ape Law would redefine the legal status and standing of certain simian species by banning human or institutional "ownership" of apes. These primates would instead be placed under the "moral guardianship" of the state, preventing their exploitation for profit. Most apes now in Spanish zoos and circuses would be transferred to state-sponsored sanctuaries. In addition, harming or mistreating a great ape would be punishable as a criminal offense (barring cases of self-defense and euthanasia). The use of great apes in medical research would also come to an end in Spain, as it has in Britain and New Zealand.

A Great Ape Law would also have global repercussions, as it would impel Spanish officials to use their voting power in international forums and organizations to promote the welfare of captive great apes in other countries and help avert the extinction of wild apes. In addition, a Spanish law protecting rights for animals would raise the bar for other European countries, making it likely that they would pass similar legislation. Finally, it would set an important precedent that could be applied to the protection of other cognitively complex species, especially elephants, whales and dolphins. 

While the resolution is considered controversial, most who oppose it do so because they believe that every right is by definition a "human" right, so of all the millions of species living on planet Earth, only humans can have rights. From this narrow perspective, granting animals even the most basic right of freedom from abuse challenges to the very core the self-centered idea of humanity’s right to use force against other species for our supposed benefit regardless of their interests. Spain's environment minister Cristina Narbona has already addressed critics' concerns by clarifying the law's intent. "We are not talking about granting human rights to great apes," she stated, "(but about) protecting (their) habitat, avoiding their ill-treatment and their use in various circus activities." 

Garrido’s declaration was inspired by and based on concepts advanced by the Great Ape Project (GAP), "an international group founded to work for the global removal of non-human great apes from the category of mere property, and for their immediate protection through the implementation of basic legal principles designed to provide these amazing creatures with the right to life, the freedom of liberty and protection from torture." To learn more about GAP, visit www.greatapeproject.org.