Thursday, May 03, 2007

Pan-kun's ape's right is being violated.

"Legally, chimpanzees belong to the same scientific family as humans. They're not pets, and they shouldn't be made to perform on TV shows for entertainment. It's damaging his chances of returning to his natural environment,"

"Chimpanzees aren't like cats or dogs, which have a 9,000-year history of being domesticated by humans. Chimps are wild animals. And they're an endangered species, having lost about 30 percent of their total population over the past 10 years," Matsuzawa tells the women's weekly. "Chimpanzees sleep 12 hours a day and spend three-quarters of the day in trees. They need seven meals daily. Making them walk around like humans all the time is too much."

"Chimps have an incredible growth spurt around age 6. They can grow to weigh around 60 kilograms and have too much power for an adult human to control them. By that time, they can't be sent back into the jungle," he says. "If they can't continue to be looked after, often they end up shut away in little cages. Making chimps into TV stars is robbing them of their right to live."

"Pan-kun turns 6 this year," Komiya tells Josei Seven. "I'm worried about what sort of life he'll be able to lead from here."

"We're going to keep in close contact with the experts and those involved in the chimpanzee's care to make sure Pan-kun grows up properly," a spokesman for the network says.waiwai

James will miss you when Pan-kun returns to the jungle.

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