![]() ![]() The treesare cut about in the most senseless way, and newones are hardly ever planted. At this rate the elephants will soonbe entirely exterminated. Last summer ninety-one elephants were killed in one day near Gasua, andthirty-seven on another occasion in the neighbour-hood of Gubere. But the avarice of both Arabs and Euro-peans has resulted in the destruction of vast numbersof these animals every year. Title: From the Congo to the Niger and the Nile : an account of The German Central African expedition of 1910-1911Īuthors: Adolf Friedrich, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, 1873-1969 Deutsche Zentral-Afrika-expedition, 1910-1911Ĭontributing Library: Robarts - University of Torontoĭigitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto "We'd be respecting their autonomy, their freedom, and allowing them to live their lives as chimpanzees who are as free as they can possibly be in North America.Identifier: fromcongotonige01adol (find matches) "They would no longer be confined against their will," says Wise. But the people at the Nonhuman Rights Project see this victory in more philosophical terms. ![]() Chimps at the sanctuary live outdoors, in family groups-in keeping with chimpanzees' social nature, say supporters of their transfer. While a victory would not give Hercules and Leo total freedom, life at Save the Chimps would be an improvement, says Jensvold. Chimp advocates say this patchwork of regulations underscores the need for legal rights. While strict welfare guidelines regulate the treatment of federally-owned chimps, privately-owned chimps-such as those represented by the Nonhuman Rights Project-are governed by the whims of their owners. Though presently kept at the university, they are reportedly owned by the New Iberia Research Center, a primate facility that has faced allegations of mistreating chimpanzees and illegally breeding them. Little else is publicly known about their lives. Even if the judge decides against Hercules and Leo, the precedent is set that a chimp is person enough to deserve a hearing.Īt Stony Brook University, Hercules and Leo are used in studies of chimpanzee movement designed to investigate the evolution of human bipedalism. Yet it could also be argued, said Lovvorn, that simply issuing the writs-regardless of whatever decision ultimately is made-implicitly recognizes chimp personhood, since under New York law habeas corpus can only be given to a person. "Getting your day in court is always a victory." Lovvorn cautioned that the habeas corpus may simply have been a procedural formality: perhaps Justice Jaffe granted them without truly believing that chimps can have rights. "It's a big step forward," said Jonathan Lovvorn, senior litigator at the Humane Society of the United States. It’s the first time habeas corpus, historically used to free slaves and people wrongly imprisoned, has ever been extended to a species other than Homo sapiens. She issued the writs on behalf of Hercules and Leo, the Stony Brook chimps. If they can’t justify it, the prisoners have to be released-a process set in motion Monday by Justice Barbara Jaffe. Preliminary arguments have focused on whether a court could issue writs of habeas corpus calling upon the chimpanzees’ owners to justify their captivity. Since then, courts have heard the cases several times. The lawsuits sought to have the chimps moved to Save the Chimps, a Florida sanctuary and, more importantly, asked that they be declared legal persons, not with full human rights but with a basic one: not to be owned and caged. Here’s what happened: In December 2013, the Nonhuman Rights Project filed lawsuits in the New York Supreme Court on behalf of four privately owned chimpanzees, considered property in the eyes of the law. The chimps, used in research at Stony Brook University, may never actually be released, but the court’s move represents a historic change in thinking about animal rights. According to a New York judge, two chimpanzees now have a right that until Monday was reserved for humans. ![]()
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