Fwd: Take Action: Call for Permanent Sanctuary!

September 26, 2007

Take Action: Call for Permanent Sanctuary Release and Restitution for Chimpanzees in U.S. Laboratories Congress Considers Permanent Protection for Retired ChimpanzeesSupport S.1916 and H.R.3295! Photo: © Michael Nichols. From Brutal Kinship (Aperture) Project R & R is calling on the United States Congress to pass pending legislation to offer chimpanzees retired into federally funded sanctuary facilities permanent protection from future research. H.R.3295 and S.1916, introduced as the Chimp Haven is Home Act by Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) and Representative Jim McCrery (R-LA), would prevent the National Institutes of Health from recalling retired chimpanzees back into

research from facilities like Chimp Haven that receive government funding. Tragically, when the Chimpanzee Health Improvement, Maintenance, and Protection Act (CHIMP Act) was signed into law in 2000, it failed to provide permanent protection for chimpanzees considered no longer “needed” in research. The Burr amendment would close this loophole. Given the physical and emotional condition of many chimpanzees when they are finally retired, as well as their shortened life expectancy as a result of confinement and laboratory use, permanent protection from research is a demand in the name of human decency. The legislation would vastly improve the CHIMP Act which created a system for

the retirement of “surplus,” government-owned chimpanzees no longer needed for research. Chimp Haven is the first and, so far, only facility awarded a contract under the Act. To be eligible for government funding ($9 federal for each $1 privately raised for building and $3 federal for each $1 privately raised for operation), a facility must agree to certain conditions, including the return of chimpanzees to research if deemed “necessary” by the head of the Department of Health and Human Services. Chimp Haven, with support from other animal protection organizations including The Jane Goodall Institute, spearheaded efforts to secure permanent protection for all chimpanzees retired from research. Privately funded sanctuaries like Fauna Foundation and Save the Chimps already offer permanent protection and are ineligible for any government support. (Click here to view a list of chimpanzee sanctuaries in the U.S.

and Canada.) Take Action! Please call or visit the online offices of:The Honorable John D. Dingell, ChairmanCommittee on Energy and Commerce202-225-4071Contact FormSenator Edward M. Kennedy, ChairmanCommittee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions202-224-4543Contact FormAsk that they favorably pass theChimp Haven is Home Act- H.R.3295 and S.1916 –and guarantee permanent protection for chimpanzees retired from research. Regis and Petra enjoying enrichment and permanentsanctuary at Fauna. Photo: © Fauna Foundation Also, please take a moment to thank the lead sponsors of this important and long overdue protection for chimpanzees retired from laboratories. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) S.1916:202-224-3154Contact Form Rep. Jim McCrery (R-LA 4th) H.R.3295:202-225-2777 Contact Form Since its passage, Project R & R has appealed for the CHIMP Act to be amended. While the CHIMP Act was groundbreaking in many ways, even a brief return to research – as it now allows – is an unacceptable price for chimpanzees to pay who have spent their lives confined in the harsh conditions of biomedical research laboratories. When first introduced in 2006, the proposed amendment to the CHIMP Act passed the House but not the Senate. Currently, the bill is before the Senate (S.1916) Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions and before the House (H.R.3295) Committee on Energy and Commerce. Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this. Tell-a-friend! If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for Project R & R. This message was sent to kerrimilam. Visit your subscription management page to modify your email communication preferences or update your personal profile. To stop ALL email from Project R & R, click to remove yourself from our lists (or reply via email with "remove or " in the subject line). Project R & R is a campaign of the New England Anti-Vivisection Society (NEAVS) 333 Washington Street, Suite 850, Boston, MA 02108 © NEAVS. All rights reserved. Manage your subscription. Write to us at releasechimps. http://www.chooseveg.com/meet-your-meat.asp

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