The latest information coming from Eden Sanctuary, in South Africa, indicate that PASA – Pan African Sanctuaries Alliance sent a representative to inspect the site and know the details of the attack of chimpanzees to a handler, as well as avoid a possible euthanasia of those innocent chimpanzees .

PASA sent a report to Jane Goodall Institute (IJG), which lends its name to that sanctuary, which is actually a private facility of a South African family. PASA also sent a statement to South African government, which initially announced the decision to kill the chimpanzees, without knowing details of the situation.

PASA, in its statement of May, when the incident happened, said that the practice of euthanasia in a case like this is a very dangerous procedure and advises euthanasia only in cases of very sick primates who are in terminal state.

In fact, Eden was never a Sanctuary since it was built precariously to serve as a tourist spot of the hotel business of the owners of the Sanctuary, who were able to convince IJG to lend its name to give it credibility.

Some of the chimpanzees who are there used to live in Angola and the authorities of Brazilian Environmental Institute (IBAMA) denied, at the time, their transference for our Sanctuary. They finished there, not knowing it was an inappropriate place to welcome them. The Angolan Government itself, which wanted the chimpanzees were sent to Brazil, and officially requested the authorization, had to agree to send them to South Africa with no alternative. At that time IBAMA had no sensitivity to the issue of wildlife from a brother country like Angola.

The situation now is that the owners of Eden Sanctuary do not want to invest in improved facilities, IJG does not comment on the immediate solution of the problem, due to its name being involved, and South African government, which has no minimal commitment to this project, may at any time order the killing of two innocent chimpanzees, who have suffered a miserable life since their capture and separation from their original family.

When information emerged, GAP Project put its affiliate Sanctuaries in Brazil available to receive the chimpanzees of Eden, if no other immediate solution to prevent the sacrifice of those innocent exists.

There is also the danger that no one takes a solution and a new incident recurrence. Then it will be difficult to prevent the death of those beings who are not guilty of being kept in an improper location and subjected to a life without a future.

Dr. Pedro A. Ynterian

President, GAP Project International