[animalnepal] NP - Nepalese campaigners book success in monkey export campaign

[Guest guest]

Looks like a lotta legalese that says nothing definite, but it

sounds good on the surface. The CITIES gotcha is scary, as it was clear from

earlier communications with CITIES officials that they don¹t even know what

species are in the Treaty. Man, it¹s like pulling teeth eh?

Jigs in Nepal

 

On 2/26/09 9:23 AM, " Lucia De Vries " <luciadevries wrote:

 

>

>

>

> Dear friends,

>

> Great news from Nepal!

>

> Early February we send a request to the government committees on Natural

> Resources and Economic Development to ban monkey export. We held a

> presentation at the government on Friday February 6. Yesterday the Cie for

> Natural Resources has given directions to the Minister and breeders to ban the

> export of monkeys.

>

> This will definitely have a positive effect on the outcome of the PIL that we

> filed earlier this year.

>

> For now there will be NO EXPORT. However the campaign must continue to make

> sure the ban stays in place. It's now important to make sure the new

> constitution includes a clause on animal welfare and that there will will be

> no amendments to CITES which will give the government a legal base to export

> animals for biomedical research in future.

>

> The struggle continues!

>

> THANK YOU to everyone who supported this campaign!

>

> On behalf of Animal Welfare Network Nepal and Stop Monkey Business coalition,

>

> Lucia.

>

> Parliamentary Committee gives directions given to stop monkey export

> KATHMANDU - A parliament committee has ordered Ministry of Forest and Soil 

> Conservation to stop the process of export of rhesus monkeys for biomedical

> research.

>

> The natural resource and management committee has called Mr. Shyam 

> Bajimaya, DG of Department of National park and wildlife conservation 

> and Mr. Prabesh Man Shrestha, Chief of Nepal Biomedical Research 

> Centre, who asked for the permission to export rhesus and ordered 

> them to stop the process. The centre was continuously requesting for 

> the permission to export monkeys. 

>

> According to the present Acts and Laws of the country, the committee 

> has concluded that it is not liable to export wildlife including 

> monkeys to the third countries. 

>

> One of the breeding centres has requested permission for export of 25 

> monkeys to the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research in 2009.

>

> As the National Park and Wildlife Conservation Act 2029 has not 

> mentioned clearly about the export of wild animals, the committee 

> decided that it would not be possible to take decision on such a 

> sensitive case like export of wild animal, based on the wildlife 

> Farming, reproduction and Research Policy 2060 only. Working plan 

> also mentioned that, only the blood and skin samples from the second 

> generation of the farmed animals should be allowed exporting. 

>

> After the order of minister of Forest Kiran Gurung to the Department 

> for the proceeding of the process of export in the 2009/2/10, the 

> committee has called on Mr. Uday Raj Sharma, Secretary; Ministry of 

> Forest to stop the export of monkeys. 

>

> Secretary Sharma informed that, although the export was requested, 

> ministry has not decided yet. Writ was filed in Supreme Court by the 

> Roots and Shoots on 2009/1/29 against the export. Though Shrestha 

> requested for the export of second generation from his farming, due 

> to the lack of scientific tool and possibility of the mixing of other 

> rhesus from wild the committee has ordered to stop the export for now. 

>

> Without the scientific monitoring, legal process and lack of tools 

> the Ministry of Forest did not consider about the sensitive case like 

> export of wild animals and its impact on the biodiversity. So the 

> committee has requested not to give permission for export without 

> legal process. 

>

> Red monkeys are listed in the article 2 of " CITES Convention " and as 

> the NPWC Act 2029 have prohibited exporting any wild animal including 

> monkeys to the third countries, the committee gave order to stop the 

> export of red monkeys to US for research. 

>

> DG of DNPWC Bajimaya and Monkey farmer Shrestha said that, if there 

> is amendment in the CITES law and Wildlife conservation Act, there is 

> possibility for exporting monkeys for research. According to 

> Technical Deputy secretary of Department Mr. Surya Bahadur Pandey, 

> Department had already proposed the correction of the CITES and 

> Wildlife conservation Act five years ago.