Komputer for Alle 1998 #6/1998 CD 6 (Gul).iso/web/ffa/wwwenv~1.org/arrs/digest/news46~4.htm/text0001.txt

Text File | 1998-04-03 | 54.0 KB | 1,352 lines

>From The Electronic Telegraph - Friday, July 11th, 1997

Labour peer warns Blair of tragedy in the country
By Charles Clover, Environment Editor


SPEAKERS at the Countryside Rally from six political parties and every
corner of Britain insisted that plans to ban hunting would curtail freedoms,
reduce animal welfare and destroy rural jobs.

The crowd of more than 100,000 heard speeches from Lady Mallalieu, the
Labour peer, and Michael Heseltine, the former deputy prime minister. There
were threats of civil disobedience from a Welsh huntsman, David Jones, and
the columnist Auberon Waugh.

Lady Mallalieu, a keen huntswoman, said it was a tragedy that the private
member's Bill to ban hunting put forward by the "very new MP" Michael Foster
would criminalise many of those present at the rally.

"We cannot and will not stand by in silence and watch our countryside, our
communities and way of life destroyed forever by misguided urban political
correctness," she warned.

Dressed in a red frock coat, which she earlier described as socialist pink
not hunting pink, she rebuked Tony Blair for his reaffirmation, the day
before, that he would vote to ban hunting.

She said: "Tony Blair has said he will govern on behalf of the whole
nation.That is what we want. He is entitled to his private view but the
Government has not given support to this pernicious Bill and we hope it will
never do so."

She said that the rally was about "the freedom of people to choose how they
live their own lives. It is about tolerance of minorities and, sadly those
who live in the countryside, are now a minority. It is about listening to
and respecting the views of other people of which you may personally
disapprove".

She said: "The irresponsible seem to feel free and qualified to tell the
responsible that they are, and I quote, 'barbaric sadists and perverts'."

Lady Mallalieu said that a ban on hunting would result in more snaring, more
wounding and more prolonged deaths which followed injury. Some 16,500  jobs
depended on hunting and 63,000 relied partly on it. Fifty thousand  horses
and 20,000 hunts would become redundant overnight and ú100 million worth of
business would be lost to the rural economy.

"All these things are important to us but so is this. Hunting is often
described as a sport. But to those of us who have heard the music of the
hounds and love it, it is far more than that," she said.

"Hunting is our music, it is our poetry, it is our art, it is our pleasure.
It is where many of our best friendships are made, it is our community. It
is our whole way of life. We will fight for these things with all the
strength and dedication we possess because we love them. Do not forget us,
or what we have done today. We have made history. The countryside has come to
London to speak out for freedom."

Lady Mallalieu ended her highly-charged speech with the words Shakespeare
gave to Henry V, addressing another minority "We few, we happy few, we band
of brothers" on the eve of another battle, Agincourt.

Michael Heseltine congratulated the organisers as he looked out from the
stage and said: "No one interested in the tolerance and freedom of our
people can ignore what I see now."

He said he would join those who would use every parliamentary device to
prevent the Foster Bill becoming law for three reasons. "First, it would not
save the life of a single fox. It would simply force farmers to use other
ways to contain them. Second, the people behind this Bill will not be
satisfied with its enactment. The next targets would be shooting, fishing
and other country sports. Third, and above all, this law would undermine
rural communities, damage already fragile economies, destroy people's jobs,
force the unnecessary death of countless horses and hounds and cause
incalculable and unpredictable damage to the quality of the rural
environment. This law adds up to a vicious onslaught on a treasured
tradition of rural life for no reason beyond the satisfaction of the bigotry
and prejudice of people whose
concept of rural life owes more to Walt Disney than any appreciation of the
real world."

William Hague, the leader of the Opposition, attended the rally but did not
make a speech. However, in a statement he denounced the Foster Bill as an
"divisive measure creating two nations in our country by setting the town
against the countryside".

He added: "Labour MPs appear to believe that they are re-fighting the old
class war but this country has a long and proud history of freedom and
tolerance, and freedom is important even when it is unpopular. The strength
of democracy is judged by the way it treats its minorities."

The mass protest was the culmination of a nationwide trek by marchers from
Scotland, Wales and the West Country. The marchers arrived at Hyde Park Gate
at noon and were welcomed with tumultuous applause. Wearing yellow T-shirts
emblazoned with the words "Listen To Us", marchers were greeted by the
environmentalist David Bellamy and champion jockey Willie Carson before
taking a petition to 10 Downing Street. But two of the marchers sounded a
darker note, with the threat of civil disobedience on a wide scale, if an
anti-hunting Bill was passed.

David Jones, the huntsman of the David Davies Hunt, who had marched to Hyde
Park from Machynlleth, Powys, said: "I have one thing to say. This is the
last peaceful march. This is the last peaceful rally."

Sam Butler, an estate agent and one of the organisers of the marches, said:
"Tony Blair has reiterated that he will vote for a ban on hunting and he had
said there will be no disruption in the countryside. We are here to fight
and if politicians ignore what has been happening here they do so at their
peril."

Among the speakers who queued to take the stage included the actor Jeremy
Irons, the author Frederick Forsyth and the model Paula Hamilton. The former
Liberal leader Lord Steel, Sir Thomas Pilkington, senior steward of the
Jockey Club, and Lord Wakeham, chairman of the British Horseracing Board,
were also among them. Simon Bates, the former Radio One disc jockey, was one
of the masters of ceremonies.

Frederick Forsyth directed his brief speech to Tony Blair. He said: "You
have inherited a country with such a large majority that you can pass any
legislation you want. That's power Prime Minister, but it's rotten
government. You can run this country the way you promised or you can run it
as an elective dictatorship. We are waiting for your answer."

Neil Greatrex, president of the Union of Democratic Mineworkers, a shooting
and ferreting man, told the crowd: "I wish I'd got you lot behind me when
they shut our pits down in 1992. We'd have got our pits reprieved and likely
as not 20 new pits sunk. It was economic madness and you can envisage the
whole episode being repeated once again. No matter what politicians say -
and most of them lie more than a busload of poachers - shooting, angling and
other sporting activities will eventually be included in the list of bans."

Auberon Waugh, The Daily Telegraph columnist, said that the anti-hunting
Bill was a "declaration of war on rural England." He said the options open
to country people if hunting was banned included blocking the traffic,
making life difficult for the National Trust and poisoning the water supply.

Whether he was serious about the last point was unclear as he then invited
the crowd to sing Jerusalem.

 ⌐ Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.

[ In another report in the Telegraph, it was reported that model Paula
Hamilton's day had got off to a bad start after a ferret which she tried to
cuddle bit her.  CTV National News covered the rally with a feed from one of
the US networks. The report included video footage of a fox being ripped
alive by a pack of hounds. The footage was provided by the League Against
Cruel Sports.]


Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 02:33:14 -0700 (PDT)
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [UK] Ban would create carcass problem
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"


>From The Electronic Telegraph - Friday, July 11th, 1997

Ban would create carcass problem
By David Brown, Agriculture Editor

A HUNTING ban would create a huge problem for farmers who rely on hounds to
eat thousands of fallen livestock each year, the Government was warned
yesterday.

About 13,000 hounds, which are often fed with meat from casualty farm
animals, are expected to be shot if hunting is banned. Brian Rogers,
chairman of the United Kingdom Renderers Association, which represents
companies that process animal carcasses, said that farmers would probably
bury their casualty livestock to avoid paying charges to knackers and renderers.

The association called on the Government to require fallen livestock to be
collected from farms by specialist vehicles and incinerated in rendering
plants. It claimed that until Britain adopted the practice, common in
Europe, the EU was unlikely to lift the export ban on British beef.

Mr Rogers said burying carcasses was adding to a growing environmental
problem of disposing of cattle carcasses following the beef crisis. While
British renderers disposed of 80,000 tons worth of fallen livestock a year,
at least double that was disposed of by burying or feeding to hounds.

Cuts in Government cash aid of ú100 million a year to the rendering
industry, which started to take effect this month, meant that butchers with
waste trimmings from cattle cleared for sale, could find it cheaper to send
it to landfill sites instead of having it destroyed in specialised plants.
Restrictions on the use of bovine materials in animal food and other
products meant that this material now had no commercial value in Britain.

Mr Rogers said: "We are producing more than a million tons a year of this
waste. It raises the question of whether it is acceptable on environmental
or public health grounds to have this raw waste disposed of in landfill sites."

The Government subsidy, introduced to keep the rendering system functioning
after the beef crisis broke last year, would be phased out by next March.
This meant that renderers would be unable to pay the meat trade an
acceptable price for its animal waste. This made landfill an attractive
alternative.

Paul Foxcroft, chairman of the association's product committee, said that
while the Ministry of Agriculture felt it was perfectly legal to dump this
raw waste in landfill sites, the Environment Agency was opposed to the practice.

 ⌐ Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 02:33:31 -0700 (PDT)
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Another chance to vote on hunting
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Came across this site in a link from The Electronic Telegraph.

Kevin "Fox" Wright's home page deals with providing information etc about
blood sports, but this particular page is a vote on whether you think
hunting with hounds is okay or is barbaric.

So far, the vote is running 57% anti-hunting, 43% pro-hunting, so it would
be nice to have a bigger anti-hunting majority.

The URL to point your browsers at is: www.westwind.demon.co.uk/bsp/vote.htm

Thanks for taking a few moments to vote.

David

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 18:33:05 +0800
From: jwed <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (CN) Protecting its home can save the giant panda
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

China Daily. Date: 11th July, 1997.

THE most effective protection that can be afforded China's endangered giant
panda begins at home -- the panda's home, said an official at the Giant
Panda Protection Office of the Forestry Ministry.

By protecting the giant panda's natural habitat, we protect the panda, he
told the Xinhua News Agency during a Tuesday interview in Beijing.

The official noted that a series of Forestry Ministry and government
departmental efforts had reduced the threat from humans to the giant
panda's habitat -- but a lack of funds prevents the government from doing
as much as could be done.

The official said he had made a tour of Sichuan and Shaanxi provinces,
where most of the giant pandas live. "About 1,000 giant pandas in the world
are now being separated into small groups by human activities and highways,
and there are only three to five giant pandas in some of the smallest
groups," he said, cautioning that this will lead to serious problems with
inbreeding and species degeneration.

He explained that an unstable food supply is another serious ecological
problem for the giant pandas, and "what is worse, bamboo, the staple food
of the giant panda, has been dying in large tracts for a period of time."

>From 1983 to 1996, as many as 183 giant pandas were found suffering from
disease or malnutrition. Many were brought back to health and released back
into their natural habitats.

According to the official, since 1992, when the "China Giant Panda and
Habitat Protection Project" was started by the Ministry of Forestry, 11
natural reserves have been established, bringing the number of natural
reserves for the giant panda to 25.

The official said the ministry has allocated 64 million yuan ($8 million)
for the protection project, and that "our goal is to continue to establish
natural reserves for the giant panda so that their natural habitats can be
put under State protection."

Over the next several years, there will be three new natural reserves and
17 "green passageways" linking several natural reserves to better protect
the giant panda.

Ministry sources also say that, since 1992, when China intensified
protection of the giant panda, a number of timber mills have been shut down
and people have been relocated to reduce the harmful effects of human
activities on this endangered animal.

The giant panda protection staff turned to science to look for solutions to
the panda's breeding and food supply problems.

Since 1984, special funds have been allocated for research into how to
retard the flowering of bamboo, after which some varieties die, and to
protect the plant. (Xinhua)


Every child has the right to a healthy diet - that means no meat.

http://www.earth.org.hk/
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 20:08:38 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (AU) Four-metre crocodile biggest and ugliest caught in 13
  years
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>Hong Kong Standard
11 July 97

Four-metre crocodile biggest and ugliest caught in 13
years

DARWIN: A four-meter crocodile captured on a ranch in northern Australia is
not just the biggest caught in 13 years, it is also the ugliest, its new
custodians say.

``There are not too many pretty crocs but this poor old fellow really has
been hit with the ugly stick,'' crocodile farmer Janelle Pugh said.
Mrs Pugh is now holding the crocodile, dubbed ``Scar'' by her nine-year-old
daughter, after it was trapped in the Roper River at the Lonesome Dove
cattle station, about 450 kilometres southeast of
Darwin.

Government wildlife officers snared the beast in a trap baited with a
donkey's leg, after a months-long spree of killing and terrorising cattle in
the region.

``Pastoralists called us in because for the last few months they had found
their cattle either going missing or being found mauled,'' wildlife officer
Patrick Carmody said.

The croc weighed almost a ton and was about 80 years old, wildlife officers
said. With a deformed face and about a metre missing from its tail, the
crocodile was the largest caught since a
five-and-a-half metre monster in 1984, and third behind a notorious
crocodile nicknamed ``Sweetheart'' caught in 1979 and measuring more than
six metres.

Sweetheart's stuffed carcass is on display in the Northern Territory Museum.

Mrs Pugh said the crocodile would now be used for breeding.

Crocodiles have been a increasing menace in the tropical north of Australia
in recent years. Their numbers have grown dramatically following an end to
hunting more than 20 years ago.

Many beaches and rivers are designated as dangerous to humans. - AP

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 20:11:02 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (CN) Pandas to get paths for love
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>Hong Kong Standard
11 July 97

Pandas to get paths for love

BEIJING: China plans to build new nature reserves and ``green passageways''
to protect panda habitats and ensure lonely groups of the endangered animal
can travel in search of mates.

Saving the habitat of the giant panda was the most effective way to preserve
the species, Xinhua News Agency quoted an official of the Forestry
Ministry's Giant Panda Protection Office as saying on Thursday.

Over the next few years, authorities would build three new nature reserves
and 17 ``green passageways'' linking areas set aside for the panda, the
official said.

The passageways would help prevent inbreeding and genetic deterioration
among pandas by allowing the notoriously frigid animals to move around, he
said.
``About 1,000 giant pandas in the world are now being separated into small
groups by human activities and highways, and there are only three to five
giant pandas in some of the smallest groups.''

China has made some progress in reducing human threats to the areas and
already has 25 nature reserves for pandas, but a lack of funds is hampering
efforts to ensure the species' survival. - Reuter

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 20:16:26 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Gaultier skins
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>The Straits Times
11 July 97
Gaultier changes his spots


     PARIS -- The man who once swore he used only recycled or fake fur
closed ranks  with the rest of the Paris couture club on Wednesday, and sent
out hides belonging to  creatures ranging from monkeys to minks.

     Jean-Paul Gaultier, in his second stab at haute couture, unleashed
fox-head stoles over  pinstripe trouser suits, Mongolian lamb hats, and a
kimono and bridal gown of  breitschwarntz, the velvety fur of baby
astrakhans supposedly born dead -- a hit on several catwalks this season.

The secret to this season's fur craze is that the fur industry, devastated
by political correctness, has given the couture houses animal skins for
free, hoping the thousands of  pages of magazine photographs will revive the
market.

     Fur, genuine fox, sable and mink, seemed to be everywhere, for indoors
and out, on  hats, shawls, the cuffs of gloves, and as trim on gowns or
suits. -- Reuter.

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 10:22:26 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Horse Owner Charged in Cruelty Complaint
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

McAlester, OK (USA): The owner of a thoroughbred has been charged with
cruelty to his underweight horse that allegedly was stuck in a Kiowa pasture
with moldy hay and slimy water.

Dustin Pollock is scheduled for arraignment July 23.

During a preliminary hearing this week, Patrolman Tommy Lyons said he had
noticed the horse in a pasture with little feed or water May 7.

"Every rib on the animal was showing," Lyons said.

Dr. Eric Wynn, a veterinarian, testified that the horse was emaciated and 300
pounds underweight. Wynn said food and water sources were inadequate.

Wynn testified that the horse has gained about 150 pounds in 62 days.


-- Sherrill
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 10:30:02 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: State Hog Firm Moving into Kentucky
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Madisonville, KY (USA): A hog farm company that has operations in Oklahoma
and Texas expects to move into western Kentucky, hiring 120 people locally
and eventually producing 500,000 animals annually for market.

The Vall Co. has purchased options on 3,200 acres in Hopkins County to build
a $7 million complex, the company said Wednesday.

Vall East Inc. in Kentucky will initially include a 24,000-sow operation with
feed mills and offices built and operated by the company. It will contract
the growth of nursery and finishing operations to local growers.

Vall is expected to join other large-scale hog farms moving into the region,
attracted to the area's low labor costs and availability of feed grain.

Vall is a family-owned agricultural company headquartered in Lerida, Spain.

In 1993 the company formed Vall Inc. in Texhoma, Oklahoma. It has operations
in the panhandles of both Oklahoma and Texas.


-- Sherrill

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 10:34:56 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Bird Rescues Another Bird
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

A lady in a local Oklahoma (USA) town sent a photo into the newsroom at our
CBS affiliate with a very sweet story behind it.

Apparently, a woodpecker had flown into her house window and knocked himself
out cold. As she was watching, another bird flew to his rescue! The bird
picked up the unconscious bird and flew with it to a nearby tree branch. This
bird stayed with the unconscious bird for approximately TWO HOURS, watching
over it. The woodpecker finally woke up and appeared to be okay, then both
birds flew off into the sky.

--Sherrill
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 10:14:11 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (HSUS Government Affairs)
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Desperate, Part II
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Thank you, to everyone who called/wrote/faxed/e-mailed their senators
on the CAMPFIRE issue!

We've just learned that the CAMPFIRE issue will be voted on in the
House on Wednesday, July 16.  CAMPFIRE is the US program that sends
millions of US tax dollars to Africa to promote trophy hunting,
including hunting of endangered and threatened species like elephants,
leopards, and baboons.

*Please* call or fax your representative by Tuesday, July 15.  (Unless
you live very close to DC, a letter will not make it in time.)  If you
don't know your representative's name/number, you can call the House
switchboard at [phone].  You should ask him/her to "cut CAMPFIRE
funding by supporting the amendment to the Foreign Operations
Appropriations Bill."  Be sure to tell your representative that you are
a constituent.

Thank you!

Sincerely,
Doris Lin
HSUS Grassroots Assistant

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 11:57:32 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Another Oklahoma Anti-PETA  Editorial
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>


This appeared in a local Okla. City newspaper on June 10th:

                             Front For Terrorism?

Imagine an anti-abortion leader making the following statement:
"Arson, property destruction, burglary and theft are 'acceptable
crimes' when used for the unborn's causes."
Substitute the words "animals' causes" and you have the sentiments
of Alex Pacheco, cofounder and director of People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals (PETA).  That's right. Pachecho has endorsed
terrorism.
There's growing concern worldwide over environmental and animal
rights terrorism.  It ranges from protesters throwing red paint on fur
coats to fire-bombing research labs.  Will it soon spread to murder?
 Contrary to the propaganda of liberal groups such as the Southern
Law Poverty Center, terrorist acts against people are actually
declining in the US.  They peaked back in 1982, long before the
"militia" movement was singled out as a threat.
But environmental terrorism is on the rise.  FBI Director Louis Freeh
last spring noted in the 1992 Rod Colorado, convicted of firebombing
a Michigan research facility, as an example of such terrorism.
Yet Colorado benefited from a hefty donation from PETA, a group
supposedly concerned with compassion towards animals.  Colorado
was a member of the Animal Liberation Front, which claims
responsibility for most animal rights terrorism.
While sending $42,500 to Coronado in 1995, PETA spent less than
$5000 for animal shelters nationwide.  Americans for Medical Progress
which supports the use of animals in medical research, cites US
Dept. of Justice estimates showing an increase by as much as 20%
in the cost of medical research as a result of violence.  Yet there's
no nation outcry to crack down on leftist animal rights groups.
  Nor is there federal protection for research labs as there is for
abortion clinics.  PETA is outspoken against cruelty toward animals,
a postion ...this paper.... supports (animals should not be used for
testing unless the research involves conditions that are life-threatening
to people.)  But it is silent on the most hideous form of human abortion.
  To be fair, some PETA members are pro-life and many pro-lifers are
silent on animal cruelty.  But terrorism, whether directed against
animal researchers or abortion doctor, is always the wrong way to
redress grievances.
PETA's endorsement of terrorism leads us again to appeal to our
readers not to support this group.

                                           For the Animals,

                                           Jana, OKC
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 12:25:39 -0400
From: Patrick Nolan <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: alert on trapping
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1


SOCIETY FOR ANIMAL PROTECTIVE LEGISLATION
P. 0. Box 3719
Georgetown Station
Washington, D.C. 20007

ONE MORE BIG EFFORT NEEDED

July 8, 1997

Dear Humanitarian:

[phone]

Extremely Urgent

On July 22, just two weeks from now, the European Union's (EU) Foreign
Ministers will vote to reject or accept the cruel trapping agreement
proposed by the EU Commission, Canada, and Russia. This agreement would
actually entrench the use of the world's most painful and widely used
trap: the leghold trap.

YOU CAN HELP by appealing to the Foreign Ministers whose names appear on
the enclosed list. PLEASE URGE THEM TO REJECT THE AGREEMENT, which makes
a mockery of the good EU Regulation 3259/91 against the leghold trap.
Ask them to implement the Regulation's import ban of furs from 13
species that come from countries which haven't prohibited use of the
leghold trap.

Last month the Council of Ministers of the Environment refused to accept
the shockingly inhumane agreement proposed by the EU Commission, Canada,
and Russia. This was an important milestone in our long fight to protect
animals from the ravages of the leghold trap, but we need to make sure
that the Foreign Ministers do not succumb to the threat of a World Trade
Organization challenge by the United States.

British, French, Austrian, and Belgian Environment Ministers were the
chief opponents of the Commission's disastrous agreement. Their
countries deserve your praise. If you can fax the Foreign Ministers or
call the embassies or immediatelv write air mail letters, your voice
will be heard. (Air Letters are available at the Post Office for 50ó.)

These letters, faxes, and phone calls may be the most important you ever
make on behalf of animals. THANKS for all you can do!

Sincerely,

Madeleine Bemelmans, President
Christine Stevens, Secretary

FOREIGN MINISTERS' NAMES, ADDRESSES AND FAX NUMBERS

Hon. Wolfgang Schussel
Vice-Chancellor and Federal
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Ballhausplatz #2
1014 Vienna
AUSTRIA
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Erik Derycke
Minister for Foreign Affairs
#2 Rue Quatre Bras
1000 Brussels
BELGIUM
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Niels Helveg Petersen
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Asiatisk
Platz #2
1448 Kobenhavn K.
DENMARK
Faxi 011-453 159-0533

Hon. Tacja Halonen
Minister for Foreign Affairs
P.O. Box 176
00161 Helsinki
FINLAND
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Hubert Vedrine
Minister for Foreign Affairs
37 Quai D'Orsay
75700 Paris
FRANCE
Fax; 011-33-1-4551-6012

Hon. Hans Van Mierlo
Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs
PO. Box 20061 2500 EB
The Hague
THE NETHERLANDS
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Jaima Garia
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Largo do Rilvas
1200 Lisboa
PORTUGAL
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Javier Solana Madariaga
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Palacio de la Provincia, 1
Madrid 28071
SPAIN
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Dr. Klaus Kinkel
Federal Minister for Foreign
Affairs
Adenauer Allee 99-103
53113 Bonn
GERMANY
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Theodoros Pangalos
Minister for Foreign Affairs
1 Akadimias
Athens 10671
GREECE
Fax: [phone]B5

Hon. Dick Spring
Tanaiste and Minister for
Foreign Affairs
80 St. Stephens Green
Dublin 2

Fan; 011-353 1478 1484

Hon. Lamberto Dini
Ministero degli Affairesteri
P.E. Farnese #1
00194 Roma
ITALY
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Jacques Poos
Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs
Foreign Trade and Cooperation
5 Rue Notre Dame L2910 Luxembourg
LUXEMBOURG Fax: [phone]

Hon. Lena Hjelm-Wallen
Minister for Foreign Affairs
10323 Stockholm
SWEDEN
Fax: [phone]

Hon. Robin Cook Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
House of Commons London SW1A 0AA UNITED KINGDOM Fax: [phone]

* To reach a Foreign Minister: Air letters need to be sent on or before
July 12th. before July 20th.

* If you miss these deadlines:

FAXes can be sent any day

the last chance to
register your plea for the animals is through phone calls to
the embassies:

Austria: 202-895-6700
Belgium: 202-333-6900
Denmark: 202-234-4300
Finland: 202-298-5800
France: 202-944-6000
Germany: 202-939-5800
Greece: 202-462-3939
Italy: 202-328-5500
Luxembourg: 202-265-4171
Netherlands: 202-244-5300
Portugal: 202-328-8610
Spain: 202-728-2340
Sweden: 202-467-2600
United Kingdom: 202-462-1340



Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 16:51:07 +0000 (GMT)
From: Daniel Paulo Martins Ferreira <[e-mail]>
To: Patrick Nolan <[e-mail]>
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: alert on trapping
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII



On Fri, 11 Jul 1997, Patrick Nolan wrote this adress in a posting to
ar-news:

> Hon. Jaima Garia
> Minister for Foreign Affairs
> Largo do Rilvas
> 1200 Lisboa
> PORTUGAL
> Fax: [phone]

This lines should be corrected as follows:

  Hon. Jaime Gama
  Minister for Foreign Affairs
  Largo do Relvas
  1200 Lisboa
  PORTUGAL
  Fax: [phone]


Regards.

Daniel

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 17:15:41 +0000 (GMT)
From: Daniel Paulo Martins Ferreira <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Public Petition Against Animal Experiments Secrecy
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII


Greetings.

At the UK National Anti-Vivisection Society web site
(www.cygnet.co.uk/navs) you can find an online public petition against
animal experiments secrecy.

I think ar-news community should take a look. I'm sure most of you will
want to sign it.

Regards.

Daniel

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 10:41:01 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Christine M. Wolf" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: Desperate, Part II
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 10:14 AM 7/11/97 -0500, HSUS Government Affairs wrote:
>Thank you, to everyone who called/wrote/faxed/e-mailed their senators
>on the CAMPFIRE issue!
>
>We've just learned that the CAMPFIRE issue will be voted on in the
>House on Wednesday, July 16.  CAMPFIRE is the US program that sends
>millions of US tax dollars to Africa to promote trophy hunting,
>including hunting of endangered and threatened species like elephants,
>leopards, and baboons.
>
>*Please* call or fax your representative by Tuesday, July 15.  (Unless
>you live very close to DC, a letter will not make it in time.)  If you
>don't know your representative's name/number, you can call the House
>switchboard at [phone].  You should ask him/her to "cut CAMPFIRE
>funding by supporting the amendment to the Foreign Operations
>Appropriations Bill."  Be sure to tell your representative that you are
>a constituent.
>
>Thank you!
>
>Sincerely,
>Doris Lin
>HSUS Grassroots Assistant
>
>

ALSO, FEEL FREE TO CALL ME AT THE FUND FOR ANIMALS FOR THE NAMES OF
YOUR
SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVES!

******************************************************************
Christine Wolf, Director of Government Affairs
  The Fund for Animalsphone: 301-585-2591
  850 Sligo Ave., #300fax:   [phone]
  Silver Spring, MD 20910e-mail: [e-mail] / web: www.fund.org

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change
the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."  (Margaret Mead)

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 14:01:39 -0400
From: Shirley McGreal <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: More on the Madison monkeys
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

The Wisconsin State Journal has confirmed that negotiations have been under
way for possible acquisition of monkeys at the Vilas Park Zoo, Madison, by
the Procter and Gamble company.

A 10 July story in the Journal ran two photos, one of a monkey captioned
"Monkeys' Future in Doubt" with the caption, "Is a move in the future for
this macaque and 147 of his monkey friends at the Vilas Park Zoo? That
question surfaced this week after UW-Madison's Wisconsin Regional Primate
Center said it no longer needed the animals kept at the zoo for behavioral
studies."

Another photo showed the monkey housing with the caption, "The stump-tailed
macaque and rhesus monkeys attract a crowd Wednesday afternoon at Madison's
Vilas Park Zoo. "The zoo is not a zoo without a monkey island" said Nancy
Kinson, as she visited the zoo with family.

The heading stated "Despite scientists' snub, monkeys still a Vilas hit."

The story by John Walsh ran as follows:

        Our of favor with the scientists, the monkeys at Madison's Vilas
Park Zoo remain a crowd-pleaser.
        "Everyone loves the monkeys," Bruce Kinson, 11, of Oregon said
during a zoo visit Wednesday. "They're fun to wtach, and they're the smartest."
        But the future of the zoo's 148 monkeys is in jeopardy, leading a
local animal rights group to question whether the playful animals will be
subjected to painful experimentation.
        The rhesus and stump-tailed macaques that live in the flying saucer
shaped building are the zoo's only residents that don't belong in the zoo.
Instead, they belong to UW-Madison's Wisconsin Regional Primate Research
Center which is now looking into new funding for the animals, possibly
selling them to a private company, or giving them to the zoo.
        Zoo Director Dave Hall said he was informed several weeks ago of the
research center's plans not to seek an extension when its lease renewal was
due in 2002. But with a major cat exhibit due to open in two weeks and a
bird project already started, the zoo would have difficulty commiting to
taking over care of the monkeys.
        "I don't know how it would fit in," Hall said, "It's all
hypothetical right now."
        The center's interim director Joe Kemnitz, said he is talking with
Procter and Gamble Co., which has expressed interest in using the monkeys
for breeding stock. He said his first choice would be for the animals to
stay and have their care taken over by zoo staffers. He estimated yearly
food bills for all of the monkeys at between $25,000 and $50,000.
        "I think if people knew what was going on they would put pressure on
the primate center to do what is right," said Tima Kaske, executive director
of the Madison-based Alliance for Animals. "They were trying to get this
done benind closed doors."
        She said there is little guarantee that if the monkeys are sold to a
pharmaceutical company they would not be subjected to invasive procedures.
        The research center was one of seven created by the federal
government in the early 1960s. In the early years, behavioral studies
received the bulk of its funding and researchers flocked to the zoo to see
the animals interact.
        But in later years, funding shifted toward biomedical research, and
more work was done at the center's laboratories, 22 Charter Street. The
center's last study of the zoo animals ended this year and no more are
planned, Kemnitz said.
        But as waves of children and parents gravitated to the monkeys
Wednesday, there was little doubt they remain one of the zoo's stars.
        "A zoo without monkeys wouldn't be the same," said Roy Hence of
Madison, who visited the zoo Wednesday with his wife and two kids. "Save the
monkeys."


Dr. Shirley McGreal, Chairwoman
International Primate Protection League, POB 766 Summerville SC 29484 USA
Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone] E-mail: [e-mail]
Web page (revised January 1997): http://www.sims.net/organizations/ippl/

NOTE; THE OLD E-MAIL ADDRESS AT SC.NET IS NOT BE IN USE, PLEASE DIRECT
ALL
E-MAIL TO [e-mail]

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 11:39:53 -0700 (PDT)
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [CA] Helping gorillas and humans
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>From MacLean's Magazine - July 15th edition

At work, Kerry Bowman, a social worker at the Toronto Hospital, is
interested in how culture influences people's illnesses. In his spare time,
he studies apes. So when Bowman, 40, visited Africa recently to research the
plight of the western lowland gorilla, it was only natural that he also
study the local human inhabitants.

During the month he spent in Cameroon and the Congo, Bowman confirmed
troubling reports from central and west Africa: that new roads cut through
the jungle by logging compamies have made it easier for poachers to hunt the
already-endangered gorillas, as well as chimpanzees.

The apes are butchered, smoked and shipped to the cities, where they are eaten.

"This has gone from occasional domestic use in forest areas to a commercial
enterprise," says Bowman.

But his time there also gave him reason to hope the practice cam be halted.

Among the 100-plus groups in the Camerron region, he could find none whose
religion or culture requires thay eat the meat. In addition, he adds, there
are plenty of other, non-endangered animals, so no one will starve if apes
are removed from the diet.

Bowman is now co-developing a series of 20-minute radio plays to inform
African listeners, for instance, that it is, in fact, illegal to hunt the
apes, and that they are very human-like.

"It is not a very media-saturated area," says Bowman. "There are no
chimpanzees on TV selling them Visa cards, In fact, most of them have never
seen the animals alive."

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 14:48:32 -0400
From: "D'Amico, AnnMarie" <[e-mail]>
To: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>,
        "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: Public Petition Against Animal Experiments Secrecy
Message-ID: <c=US%a=_%p=NIH%l=NIHHUB/HUB/[e-mail]>

Hello...

The Nature of Wellness will celebrate the release of "LETHAL MEDICINE" a
brand-new documentary that demolishes the claims of the Vivisectionist
industry.

This fundraising premiere will be held in Los Angeles - Aug. 16th and New
York City - Sept. 13/14.

The funds are going to be used to buy television airtime for this most
critical documentary.

If anyone is interested in additional information, please call 818/790-6383
or email me with your fax # and I'll get the info to you.

TKS -- AM

----------
 From: Daniel Paulo Martins Ferreira[SMTP:[e-mail]]
 Sent: Friday, July 11, 1997 1:15 PM
 To: [e-mail]
 Subject: Public Petition Against Animal Experiments Secrecy


Greetings.

At the UK National Anti-Vivisection Society web site
(www.cygnet.co.uk/navs) you can find an online public petition against
animal experiments secrecy.

I think ar-news community should take a look. I'm sure most of you will
want to sign it.

Regards.

Daniel



Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 16:01:38 -0400 (EDT)
From: "A. Hogan" <[e-mail]>
To: allen schubert <[e-mail]>
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (UK) British Hunters March for Rights
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII


Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 14:44:49 -0700 (PDT)
From: Friends of Animals <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Canada Geese and Environmental Rascism
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Contact info for calls follows the
news release.

-Bill Dollinger, FoA

July 11, 1997    For Immediate Release:
Contact:   Carroll Cox   [phone]

USDA Animal Damage Control agency sent uninspected,
potentially contaminated geese to soup kitchens

               WASHINGTON D.C.--The carcasses of more than
1,700 Canada geese sent to Virginia soup kitchens in recent weeks
by the USDA Animal Damage Controldivision may have been full of
lead,  herbicides and pesticides used in lawn care, and potentially
lethal bacteria, including e-coli and salmonella, warn experts--but
we'll never know for sure, Friends of Animals has discovered,  because
contrary to published reports, the USDA never inspected the remains.

               "The USDA does not regulate or inspect wild meat,"  USDA
deputy chief inspector for the Virginia region Dr. Maher Haque told
Friends of Animals special investigator Carroll Cox on Thursday, July 10.
Haque affirmed that no one from his staff  ever saw the dead geese.

               Dr. Robert D. Ragland, standards bureau chief within the USDA
Slaughter Inspection Standards and Procedures Division,  explained to Cox
also on Thursday that waterfowl such as Canada geese are outside the
coverage of the Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Inspection Act, and
are therefore outside the USDA regulatory umbrella.

               But that doesn't mean city-dwelling Canada geese are safe to
eat,
Ragland continued.  "Dr. Ragland further stated that several zoonotic
diseases could be potential problems with the meat," Cox noted, "for instance
botulism type E, psitticocus, avian influenza, and salmonella."

               Looking for a way to make mass killings of urban Canada
geese palatable to the public, while continuing to promote the propagation
of the species in hunting areas, state wildlife agencies in Minnesota and
Michigan hit upon donating the dead birds to feed the poor in 1995.
New York, Virginia, and several other states picked up the scheme last
year. The actual goose roundups and killing are most often  their trapping
credentials,  rarely if ever familiar with meat safety inspection.

               State agencies take no more responsibility for the safety of
dead
geese given to soup kitchens,  Friends of Animals special investigator
Cox found.  Virginia Fisheries and Conservation Department spokesperson
Major Herb Foster told Cox that his agency requires no inspection of wild
game meat distributed to the public, adding that no other agency did, either,
to his knowledge.  A Virginia State Health Department representative
confirmed the lack of inspection by state personnel.

               The reality of the potential hazard was demonstrated on
August 27, 1996,  when the New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation acknowledged the unfitness for human
consumption of 251 Canada geese killed at Clarkstown, New York,
and donated to the People to People food pantry.  The meat was
found to  be irrecoverably contaminated with mud,  oil,  and lead
from old shotgun pellets,  excavated from the muck at the bottoms
of ponds and ditches and accidentally ingested.

     The Clarkstown geese were among just a handful of urban-dwelling
Canada geese ever  inspected by any agency.  But experts had predicted
the findings,  including Clarkstown research  chemist Dr. Gregg B. Feigelson
and Cornell University poultry toxicologist Rodney Dietart.

     "There's a legitimate question about suburban geese being
exposed to pesticides,  herbicides, and even PCBs," Dietart told
eremy Pearce of The Detroit News when the Michigan
  Department of Natural Resources moved to donate dead Canada
geese to Detroit-area food  banks last year.  "The situation is
analagous to looking for mercury in fish.  It warrants some testing,"
Dietart said.

     Public officials blamed the Clarkstown contamination on allegedly
faulty meat processing,   but as Peter Muller of Wildwatch pointed
 out, "The finding of lead cannot be blamed on the   slaughterhouse,"
since ingested lead would be absorbed into a goose's bloodstream,  and
would  contaminate the goose's entire body.  "Lead poisoning affects
every organ," Muller continued,    "can cause nerve disorders,  and
causes mental retardation in children."

"This is classic environmental racism,"  said Cox.  "I come from rural
Mississippi,  I've lived in the ghetto,  I've been in the Third World,
and I know it when I see it.  Trying to justify the unjustifiable by
feeding dead birds that may be unfit for human consumption to
disadvantaged children in inner city neighborhoods is no different
from siting a toxic waste dump in a poor part of  the countryside
because the people are so desperate for jobs and houses that they'll
do anything  and put up with anything next door.

     "The Animal Damage Control division is part of the USDA,"
Cox continued,  "and the   USDA is supposed to be responsible for
meat and poultry safety,  but where was their sense of
  responsibility in this? The ADC was responsible for killing geese,
but nobody took responsibility for insuring public safety,  even while
the ADC and the state agencies pretended they had to kill
  geese to protect the public from all sorts of diseases that these
geese are supposed to be at least  potentially able to carry.

    "But if the geese were that deadly," Cox continued, "why did the
ADC turn around and give  their uninspected remains to soup kitchens
to feed little kids?


-------------------------------------------------------------------

Let the VA Department of Agriculture know how
you feel about the slaughter of Canada Geese:

Commissioner J. Carlton Courter
Virginia Department of Agriculture
1100 Bank ST., RM 210
Post Office Box 1163
Richmond, Virginia 23218

804-786-3501  Telephone
804 371-2945 Fax

The uninspectected meat went to:

Reggie Tupponce
Director of Operations
Central Virginia Food Bank, Inc
404-226-1899 telephone

Also contact:

Tara Hamilton
Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority
703-417-8371 telephone

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 14:27:21 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike Markarian <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail], [e-mail],
        [e-mail]
Subject: Update: Florida Hunting in Bird Sanctuaries
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

The Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission voted unanimously today to
allow hunting in parts of the South Dade Bird Sanctuary. This was a revised
proposal -- the original proposal would have affected all 118 bird
sanctuaries in Florida. This is a loss for the mourning doves in South Dade,
but a victory for the animals in the other 117 sanctuaries. Thanks to
everyone who wrote and called on this issue.

Date: Fri, 11 Jul 1997 20:51:22 -0700
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Human genes on the stem
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Scientists explore growing drugs instead of making them in labs

Reuter Information Service

LOS ANGELES (July 10, 1997 9:15 p.m. EDT) - Many human proteins used to
make a variety of drugs can be grown in fields, instead of just made in
laboratories, a California scientist said Thursday.

The vision of vast fields of grain being transformed into a kind of drug
factory came from Raymond Rodriguez, a genetics professor at the
University of California at Davis and founder of the genetic engineering
company Applied Phytologics.

Rodriguez said he had found a way to engineer rice genetically so it
produces human proteins. In similar research, the Scottish company PPL
Therapeutics Plc. recently announced it had developed a strain of rice
that produces the human protein alpha-1-antitrypsin, used to treat
cystic fibrosis.

If scientists can do the same with other proteins, Rodriguez said, the
proteins could be mass-produced in the same sort of fields that are
currently used to produce cereals. He said wheat and corn were also
ideal plants for growing the proteins.

Such a system would transform drug production from a high-cost,
low-yield process confined to scientific laboratories to one in which
large volumes are produced at dramatically reduced prices, he said.

"I don't have any doubts this can work," said Rodriguez, who estimated
the process would take another three or four years to perfect and would
then have to be approved by regulators. "Biotechnology is currently a
high-tech field, but there is a driving force to make it low-tech."

"If we can take these human genes and move them to agricultural systems,
we can produce them on a scale of metric tons at greatly reduced
prices," he said.

The process of growing these compounds involves isolating the human gene
that produces a targeted protein and inserting it into a seed of grain.
All the grain that grows from that seed should contain the
protein, which would be harvested when the grain is germinating.

Since the late 1970s, a major area of drug development research has
focused on recombinant proteins, or human proteins that are reproduced
outside the body.

Currently, however, the only way these proteins can be reproduced is in
a broth of bacteria in a laboratory setting. This system is reliable but
yields only small amounts at an often exorbitant cost.

As a result, some commonly used drugs can cost more than $1,000 per
dose. Drugs that are based on recombinant proteins include the heart
attack and stroke drug TPA, made by Genentech Inc., and Epogen, a drug
for kidney failure made by Amgen Inc.

But if recombinant proteins could be grown in fields, Rodriguez said,
the industry would probably be spurred to develop new applications that
are not now cost-effective. The grain itself, for instance, could be
used to make a protein-enriched cereal.

"One of the most exciting projects we're talking about is taking the
genes that produce mother's milk and putting them into a barley or
rice," Rodriguez said. The altered grain would then have new
disease-fighting properties.

Other biotechnology companies are exploring different agricultural
avenues for producing recombinant proteins. One of the major competing
technologies involves genetically engineering herd animals like sheep
and cattle and then harvesting the proteins from their milk.

By ANDREA ORR, Reuter

================================================================

A modern version of the Magician's Apprentice story?

Andy

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