Yorkshire MEP leads campaign against un-bear-able animal cruelty
Yorkshire Labour MEP Richard Corbett is turning up the heat on China - laying bare the cruelty inflicted on bears who are incarcerated and 'milked' for their bile.
This week, the European Parliament adopted a declaration calling on the Chinese government to end the abhorrent practice of extracting bile from moon bears.
The declaration was launched by Labour MEPs and co-signed by Richard. They then secured the signatures of over half of all MEPs (377 members) to adopt the declaration as the official position of the European Parliament.
News of the declaration prompted the Chinese government to hold a press conference last week in an attempt to defend the practice.
In response, Richard Corbett said:
"The Chinese sat up and took notice of the European Parliament last week.
"They must now realise that there is international abhorrence of bear bile farming and ban it once and for all.
"My colleagues and I intend to keep up the international pressure on China. They will have to close these bile farms before the eyes of the world turn to them for the 2008 Olympics."
Asiatic black bears, or 'moon bears', are incarcerated in tiny wire cages with rusting metal catheters implanted in their abdomens through which bile is extracted for use in traditional medicines.
Despite the availability of herbal and synthetic alternatives, bear bile is still used in traditional Chinese medicines. It is banned in the EU, but occasionally found by police in raids on Chinatown in London.
There are more than 7,000 bears imprisoned in cages on over 200 farms across China. Moon bears can expect to live up to 30 years in the wild, but life expectancy falls to 10-12 years for caged bears.more information
Press enquiries: Contact Luke Thorne, Press and Communications Officer to Richard Corbett MEP
- phone 0113 245 8987
- e-mail luke@richardcorbett.org.uk
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