Bolivia’s President Evo Morales signed on July 2^nd a new law to end the use of wild and domestic animals in travelling circuses.

After a successful passage through the Congress, the Bill passed the final hurdle, awaiting the President’s signature, and the new Act is expected to be published in the following weeks.

This is the first national law to ban the use of both domestic and wild animals in circuses in the world. So far, similar bans on animal use in travelling circuses in Austria, Costa Rica, Finland and Denmark only prohibit the use of wild animals or certain species.

The new law is based on the fact that conditions and confinement are acts of cruelty. The circuses will be allowed one year to adapt their shows to a humans-only programme and during this time, the government will issue regulations on confiscation and pecuniary sanctions for any breaches of the law.

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