Fw: Star article

[Guest guest]

In the event the Star doesn't publish this letter directly from the Limbe

Wildlife Center in Cameroon, in response to Mr. Law's assertions that gorillas

sent to Cameroon would be hunted as bushmeat one day (!), here is LWC's reply to

the Star article of 25Aug03....

 

 

Saturday, August 30, 2003 5:12 AM

Star article

 

 

Editor of the Star,

 

Having read the claims made by Mr. Datuk Seri Law Hieng Ding the Minister of

Science,

Technology and Environment of Malaysia we were stunned and disappointed by his

misrepresentation

of the facts. Contrary to his statement LWC has no plans of releasing gorillas

back to the wild. The Centre is

an internationally recognized facility for it's high standards in the care and

rehabilitation of endangered

orphaned apes.

 

Pandrillus has been providing technical and financial assistance for ten years

to the Government of Cameroon

(GoC) for the development of the Limbe Wildlife Centre. The Center's mission is

to provide the GoC with the ability to

care for and protect primates. Cameroon is considered one of the highest

priorities for great ape conservation

in all of Africa.

 

Currently the LWC houses 116 primates of which 1/3 are great apes. These animals

and all staff are routinely

screened and the health standards and protocols at the LWC are considered the

highest anywhere. At no time

is there a chance that these animals would be in any threat of poaching or other

abuses for the centre has a

dedicated Cameroonian and international staff and is under supervision 24 hours

a day. The Centre is both highly

repected and supported by all local communities.

 

Mr. Law's skepticism about releasing the apes into the wild is unfounded. In

every respect the best

possible future for these animals remains in Cameroon.

 

Pandrillus