Costa Rica to close all its zoos

[redhen]

"(CNN) -- Costa Rican officials plan to close the country's public zoos and open the cages where animals have been kept."

"The Central American country banned circuses with animal acts more than a decade ago. Sport hunting is also banned."

Also; "Costa Rica constitutionally abolished its army permanently in 1949. It is the only Latin American country to have been a democracy since 1950 or earlier"

[Eldorado]

Way to go, Costa Rica!

Edited August 13, 2013 by Eldorado

[Taun]

While I applaud Costa Rica on this, they do infact have a "National Guard" of sorts...

(from wiki - so take it for what it is:)

"Ministry of Public Security's Public Force

During 1996, the Ministry of Public Security established the Fuerza Pública or Public Force which reorganized and eliminated the Civil Guard, Rural Assistance Guard, and Frontier Guards as separate entities, they are now under the Ministry and operate on a geographic command basis performing ground security, law enforcement, counter-narcotics, and border patrol functions.

Outside the Fuerza Pública, there is a small Special Forces Unit, the Unidad Especial de Intervencion (UEI) or Special Intervention Unit, which trains with special forces of Israel, and its namesake in Spain and other democratic nations, but is not part of the main police forces. Instead it is part of the Intelligence and Security Directorate (DIS) which reports directly to the Minister of the Presidency."

[Purplos]

All zoos should be essentially nature preserves. They should house animals that cannot be returned from the wild in a habit as close to natural as possible and they should serve as rehabilitation centers and even breeding programs for endangered animals and such.

Why people would rather see a tiger in a cage than a tiger lounging on a rock in the sun amid grass and trees or whatever is beyond me.

But I am not anti-zoo 100%. They can serve a purpose.

[brlesq1]

While noble, I would think twice before releasing all the animals into the wild. First, what kind of animals do they have? Are they suited for life in the Costa Rican wild? Second, I agree with the zoo that if the animals are permanently injured, they're not going to survive long, and if that's the case, the animals are being done a disservice. Three, are they used to humans? What if they start rummaging through garbage cans for food? How long would people tolerate that?

That's just three questions I have. I won't bore you with the rest.