HONG KONG: The monkeys are not all right, according to a leading animal rights organization.
Cruelty Free International said that despite the “special protection” for them under European Union and United Kingdom laws, laboratory monkeys in the UK are still going through “extremely distressing, invasive and harmful experiments,” as recent findings published in scientific journals found.
Such practices continue mostly as a secret in universities, hospital, contract testing centers, and even government facilities across the country, warned Cruelty Free International in its report.
The prevailing ban on the use of Great Apes in experiments does not exist for monkeys, despite that they are largely similar with the apes –“highly intelligent and have a similar capacity to suffer,” the organization added.
The UK is the third largest user of laboratory monkeys in the EU, utilizing more than 2,000 of the said animals – macaques and marmosets included – every year.
Dr. Katy Taylor, director of science at Cruelty Free International, said most of the experiments are far from leading people closer to cures for debilitating human diseases.
“Most of the experiments appear to have minimal benefits for humans and give the impression of having more to do with defending the continued use of monkeys or satisfying the curiosity of researchers than advancing medical science,” Taylor said in the organization’s blog.
Taylor encourages seeking alternative methods that do not involve monkeys and other animals, including ethical human volunteer studies and “innovative experiments” that revolve around human tissues and cells.
Based on an EU directive, monkey testing should only be allowed in basic research, life-threatening or debilitating human health issues, or relevant primate species welfare and preservation.
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