Sri Lanka Abandons Plan to Export 100,000 Monkeys to China
The possibility of exporting the endangered toque macaques to China sparked concerns among activists who feared that these primates might be utilized for medical research purposes.
Mother Toque macaque (Macaca sinica) with her child foraging in Sri Lanka. Credit: Senthi Aathavan Senthilverl, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 .
Sri Lanka is no longer planning to export up to 100,000 endangered toque macaques to China, according to the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka (WNPS).
The proposal initially surfaced in April when reports emerged that a Chinese delegation had requested the Sri Lankan government to supply toque macaques for Chinese zoos, as disclosed by the country's agriculture minister.
This news raised concerns among animal protection and environmental groups, who feared that the primates may be used for medical research purposes due to the high demand.
As part of efforts to prevent the export from going ahead, 27 parties including the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka, Otara Gunawardena, Ven. Ananda Sagara Thera and Rukshan Jayawardena filed a petition before the Court of Appeal seeking Writ of Certiorari,
When the matter was taken up on Monday, the attorney general said the Department of Wildlife and Conservation had announced it that "they will not be taking steps to export monkeys to China", WNPS said in a statement.
"The case will be taken up before the Court of Appeal on 6th July to record the above undertaking given to the Court by the State," the WNPS added.
“We see this to be a significant achievement in the advancement of wildlife conservation,” the added.
The toque macaque is a medium-sized primate native to Sri Lanka. Although the species is widespread on the island, it is currently classified as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and hunting threats.
Animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said the government's decision recognized the animals "aren't commodities to be bought and sold".
"These macaques are individuals with families who live in tight-knit communities. Their lives matter, and so does their contribution to their forest home," said Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel, PETA's Senior Science Advisor.
Female Toque macaque with baby. Macaca sinica) with her child foraging in Sri Lanka. Credit: Senthi Aathavan Senthilverl, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 .
Solutions to Human-Wildlife Conflict
It is estimated that there are between 2-3 million toque macaques living in Sri Lanka. The primates face opposition from some of the public who view them as pests due to their crop destruction and raiding of villages for food.
Rather than exporting the animals, welfare advocates argue that a more sustainable solution to managing the human-monkey conflict in Sri Lanka would be to focus on conservation and habitat protection efforts.
“It’s a man-made problem. Human-wildlife conflicts are becoming more frequent, serious and widespread as human populations grow and habitats are lost,” Senior Advisor of Centre for Environmental Justice, Hemantha Vithanage told Timesonline. “This can lead to conflicts between groups of people over how to resolve the situation as a short-term solution. Regenerating the forest areas should be taken into account in favour of a durable solution.
“Reality is that people are not the owners of biodiversity. As environmentalists we have already submitted multiple strategic proposals months ago urging the authorities to resolve the pressing issue for which no notice was taken. Transparency, participation of people and law are the three main components that need to be given heed to at large,” added Vithanage.
Animal-Free Testing
Macaque breeding farm in Cambodia. Credit: Amy Jones/Moving Animals
Primates across the world are facing increased pressures from the animal testing industry. Each year, the United States imports around 30,000 primates for research and testing purposes. The long-tailed macaque's conservation status was elevated from "vulnerable" to "endangered" in 2022, partly due to the detrimental impact of exploitation by laboratory research companies.
Some studies show that primates do not serve as reliable predictors of outcomes in humans. In light of this, the FDA recently enacted the Modernization Act 2.0, which puts an end to the federal requirement of testing experimental drugs on animals prior to conducting human clinical trials.
More and more scientists are progressively embracing animal-free methods, such as cell-based tests and "organ-on-chip" technologies, which offer promising avenues for safer, more effective research and experimentation.
Species Unite sat down with Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel, PETA's Senior Science Advisor to discuss the fight to end the use of primates in animal research and experimentation. Listen here!
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