OCCUPATIONAL AND ANIMALS SAFETY IN ZOOS: A LEGAL NARRATIVE

This article examines the legal position of human and animal safety in zoos. The risk of injury or even death is high in zoos. Such risk can occur either to the people in charge of zoos, visitors or even to the animals themselves. As such, there are regulations enacted to safeguard people and animals from such risk. Tort is the primary law that governs liability of owner or management of a premise such as a zoo. Negligence and occupier’s liability is the main branch of tort law which is the most relevant to accidents in zoos. Preventive law such as the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Factories and Machinery Act are also used in ensuring safety at the work place (zoos). For the welfare and safety of animals captivated in zoos, the Wildlife Conservation legislation is enacted to ensure that animals or wildlife are treated well. Such is the scope of the article. The hypothesis of the study is that an effective law will ensure safety to human employed in and people visiting zoos and animals captivated in the zoos. The management of zoo differs from the management of other organizations. The methodology adopted is legal narrative and analysis with reference to legal instrument such as statutes passed by Parliament (legislative body). This article uses Malaysian law as a point of reference. The study finds that Malaysian law governing safety management in zoos is still inadequate.