Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Associated Press - Wednesday December 20, 2000
Deb Riechmann, Associated Press Writer
The law requires the Department of Health and Human Services to contract with a nonprofit organization to "ensure a secure retirement" for federal research chimps and "meet their lifetime needs for shelter and care."
While signing the bill, Clinton expressed concern there will be no federal oversight of the sanctuary system, even though the government retains responsibly for the welfare of the chimps. He said it puts severe restraints on the use of a chimpanzee for further research once the animal is accepted into the sanctuary system.
"This is a common-sense solution to a problem for which the federal government bears responsibility," said Wayne Pacelle, senior vice president of Human Society of the United States. "These chimps have suffered enough, and it's time they are place in suitable housing to live out their lives in some comfort and security."
There are about 1,000 such chimpanzees in six federal biomedical research institutions across the country. The government overbred chimpanzees at the beginning of the AIDS epidemic.
Chimpanzees, which can live up to 60 years, cannot be returned to the wild after medical research because most of them carry diseases such as hepatitis and HIV. They also face death from wild chimpanzees that feel their territory has been violated.
It's expected to cost $8 to $15 a day to care for a chimpanzee in a sanctuary, compared to the $20 to $30 a day now being spent to house the animals in laboratory cages, according to the Humane Society.
Last May, scientist Jane Goodall, who has been studying primates in Tanzania since the 1960s, asked during a congressional hearing on the bill:
"If we choose to ignore their emotions, intelligence and culture, shouldn't we at least give them a chance to live in peace after giving their lives in the quest for human health?"
On the Net: Legislation can be found at http://thomas.loc.gov Humane Society of the United States: http://www.hsus.org The Jane Goodall Institute: http://www.janegodall.org
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