Originally published 2020-11-16.
In November 2020, the Greek Parliament unanimously approved tougher penalties for cruelty to animals. Under the change, the most serious offences, such as poisoning, hanging, burning or mutilating an animal, can lead to prison terms of up to 10 years. Convictions for serious abuse carry at least one year in prison and fines of between 5,000 and 15,000 euros.
The vote followed weeks of public anger over shocking cases that had spread across Greek social media. Here is what the law changed, why it was passed, and what it means in practice.
What the 2020 law changed
Before the reform, most cruelty cases in Greece were treated as relatively minor offences, and sentences were often suspended or converted into small fines. Animal-welfare groups had argued for years that this sent the wrong signal, especially in cases involving deliberate torture.
The 2020 amendment raised the stakes in three ways:
- Higher maximum sentences. The gravest acts of cruelty can now be punished with up to 10 years in prison, placing them among serious crimes.
- A minimum sentence. Serious abuse now carries a minimum of one year behind bars, so courts cannot treat it as a trivial matter.
- Heavier fines. Fines for serious cases run from 5,000 to 15,000 euros, a significant sum in a country where many wages are modest.
The law spells out the kinds of acts it treats as serious: poisoning, hanging, burning and mutilation are named among them. These were exactly the methods behind the cases that had outraged the public.
Who introduced it and why
The measure was brought forward by Makis Voridis, who served as Greece's Minister of Rural Development and Food from July 2019 to January 2021. That ministry was responsible for companion animals at the time, so animal-welfare legislation fell within its remit. He is often described in English-language reports as the agriculture minister.
Presenting the law, Voridis said that "society can no longer accept such acts," describing the vote as a strong message from Parliament to society. The fact that every party supported it was notable in a parliament where cross-party agreement is rare.
The cases that sparked public anger
Two incidents in October 2020 pushed the issue to the top of the political agenda.
On Crete, a man was arrested after a dog was tortured, killed and then hanged. Photographs of the dog circulated widely online, and the images provoked a wave of fury across the country.
Days later, police arrested a 54-year-old university professor in Nikaia, a suburb in the Athens-Piraeus area, accused of stabbing his dog and beating it with a metal bar. That a well-educated professional could be accused of such violence struck many Greeks as especially disturbing.
These cases landed on top of a long-running problem: the poisoning of stray cats and dogs. Every year, poisoned food is left out in neighbourhoods, parks and tourist areas, killing animals and sometimes pets. Locals have often suspected that some of this is done to clear animals away from cafés, bars, hotels or farmland, although culprits are rarely identified. Poison baits also endanger children and wildlife, which is one reason poisoning is singled out in the law.
Greece, stray animals and the bigger picture
Visitors to Greece quickly notice the cats. They doze on harbour walls, wander through tavernas and are fed by neighbours, shopkeepers and tourists alike. Stray dogs are common too, particularly in rural areas. Many Greeks care deeply for these animals, yet the country has also struggled with abandonment, overpopulation and limited funding for shelters and sterilisation programmes.
Greece already had a law on companion animals from 2012, which made abandonment illegal and gave municipalities duties for strays. Critics said it was poorly enforced. The 2020 sentencing reform was followed in 2021 by a broader companion-animal law that focused on registration, microchipping and neutering, aiming to tackle the root causes of the stray population rather than only punishing cruelty.
Across the European Union, animals are recognised in the EU treaties as sentient beings, and many member states have strengthened cruelty laws over the past two decades. Greece's reform was part of that wider trend, and campaigners welcomed it as overdue.
What a maximum sentence really means
It is worth being clear about what "up to 10 years" means. A maximum sentence sets the ceiling for the worst cases; it does not mean every person convicted of cruelty will spend a decade in prison. Judges weigh the facts of each case, the harm caused, and the offender's history. Many convictions will result in shorter terms, and some may be suspended.
Still, raising the ceiling matters. It allows police and prosecutors to treat serious cruelty as a grave crime, it signals to courts how seriously lawmakers view such acts, and it can deter people who might previously have expected only a small fine.
The real test of any animal-welfare law is enforcement. That depends on people reporting abuse, police investigating it, and vets and forensic experts gathering evidence that holds up in court. Poisoning cases in particular remain hard to solve, because baits are often left anonymously at night.
How to help if you witness animal cruelty in Greece
If you live in or visit Greece and see an animal being harmed or find poisoned bait, a few steps can make a real difference:
- Call the police on 100 if an animal is being attacked or is in immediate danger. Cruelty is a criminal offence, so it is a police matter.
- Record evidence safely: photographs, videos, the time and the exact location. Do not touch suspected poison with bare hands.
- Get the animal to a vet quickly if it shows signs of poisoning, such as trembling, drooling, vomiting or collapse. Speed often decides whether it survives.
- Inform the local municipality, which is responsible for stray animals, and contact local animal-welfare groups, who often know how to push a case forward.
The 2020 vote showed that Greek society wanted animal cruelty treated as a serious crime. Turning that intention into fewer suffering animals depends on everyday people speaking up when they see it.
Sources: The Independent: original report on the Greek animal-abuse law (November 2020); Wikipedia: Makis Voridis (ministerial posts).
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