Tens of Thousands of PETA Supporters Speak Out Against Importing Primates for Experimentation
For Immediate Release:
January 31, 2012
Contact:
Kristin
Richards 202-483-7382
Norfolk, Va. -- Less than 24 hours after PETA began putting public pressure on Air France to ground its plan to ship 60 monkeys from the African island of Mauritius to notorious U.S. animal-testing facility Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories (SNBL), the airline has confirmed that it has canceled the February 1 shipment. This announcement comes after tens of thousands of e-mails, thousands of social media posts, and hundreds of phone calls from PETA supporters targeted the airline's headquarters.
"Thanks to the thousands of compassionate citizens who spoke up to let Air France know that cruelty doesn't fly, these monkeys will be saved from a terrifying journey and suffering and death in an abusive laboratory," says PETA Vice President of Laboratory Investigations Kathy Guillermo. "PETA is now calling on Air France to join nearly every major airline in the world—including British Airways, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic—in adopting a policy against transporting primates to laboratories, period."
The 60 macaques who were destined for the U.S. were the offspring of those torn from their families in the wild, locked up, and forced to breed in captivity on a monkey farm. The traumatized animals were to be crammed into small wooden crates and transported in dark and terrifying cargo holds of planes for more than 20 hours, including on a passenger flight just below unsuspecting customers. At SNBL, they would likely have been infected with diseases, subjected to invasive surgeries, and had tubes forced down their throats so that chemicals could be pumped into their stomachs. Air France, Air China, Continental, and Vietnam Airlines are among the few airlines that continue to transport primates to laboratories.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.
PETA's original letter to Air France follows.
January 29, 2012
Jean-Cyril Spinetta
Chairman and CEO of Air
France-KLM
Dear Mr. Spinetta:
Thank you in advance for your time. On behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our more than 3 million members and supporters worldwide, I am writing to urge Air France-KLM to immediately cancel plans to transport 60 monkeys from Mauritius (AF3591) to a notorious animal testing facility in the United States (via Paris) (AF6802) on February 1-2, 2012 (Air waybill #057-90871546).
The monkeys who will be crammed by threes into tiny wooden
crates for this fateful trek are the offspring of animals who were ripped from
their families and homes in the wild, locked in cages and forced to breed by an
infamous company called Bioculture, which recently
lost a high-profile Puerto Rico Supreme Court battle with PETA after it
illegally built a monkey breeding facility on the island.
After 20 traumatic hours of flying in the dark and
terrifying cargo holds of Air France planes—including nearly 12 hours locked
right below the feet of unsuspecting passengers on flight 3591—these sensitive,
intelligent animals will be forced to endure a 23-hour-long journey via truck
to Shin
Nippon Biomedical Laboratories, a notorious animal testing company that has
repeatedly violated federal animal welfare laws and imprisons monkeys in barren
cages, infects them with deadly diseases, subjects them to invasive surgeries,
and forces tubes down their throats so that chemicals can be pumped into their
stomachs.
PETA recently released disturbing insider information disclosed by a whistleblower from SNBL showing sick, distraught monkeys suffering horribly from tests in which they were injected with experimental chemicals. The monkeys were physically and psychologically abused, deprived of veterinary care, and left to suffer from untreated wounds.
Air France should not tarnish its otherwise world-class reputation by facilitating this cruelty and continuing to associate with such cruel and unsavory organizations.
Nearly every major airline in the world refuses to take part in this violent industry by prohibiting the transportation of primates destined for laboratories.
These airlines include Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific, China Airlines, Delta Airlines, Qantas, American Airlines, British Airways, and Aer Lingus.
We strongly urge you to cancel the shipment of 60 monkeys now scheduled for February 1, 2012 and join other leading airlines by adopting a formal policy against shipping primates to laboratories.
May I hear from you immediately regarding this urgent matter?
Sincerely,
Justin Goodman
Associate Director
Laboratory Investigations
Department