Primates Exploited All Over the World

In the news this week, three cases of primate abuse, all for different reasons, all in different countries, and all for the amusement, or benefit of the public.


First, over in Japan, a monkey has been seen to cling desperately to a young boar as he runs around Fukuchiyama Zoo in Kyoto, wild eyed and scared while onlookers scream and laugh. Both animals are clearly too young to be away from their parents and a responsible zoo would have procedures in place to ensure that young animals, such as these, are given the chance to grow up and behave naturally.




The Boar and Monkey at a Japanese Zoo.


Meanwhile, in China, a travesty of a ‘wedding’ was conducted in Hefei, in east China's Anhui province, with two chimpanzees as the ‘bride’ and ‘groom.’ Reports say the four year old male, Yangyang, was brought over from Guinea. This is particularly worrying as chimpanzees are listed under appendix 1 in CITES, meaning that all trade is prohibited, except for reasons not being commercial, such as scientific research. Chimpanzees are endangered, and dressing them up in garish clothes and parading them around in a ‘mock’ wedding ceremony is not an effective way to teach people that apes need protection. Indeed, it is fiascos like this that encourage people to view them as things for our entertainment.

Finally, to protect tourists and athletes during the Commonwealth Games, India has deployed an ‘army’ of 10 langurs to scare away the Indian bonnet monkeys, which have a reputation of attacking humans. There are better ways to deter monkeys from the public, and using wild animals is not an ideal, let alone ethical method to use. With the large numbers of people expected to arrive at the Commonwealth Games, and the sheer noise they will make, the langurs themselves are at risk of becoming scared, and potentially becoming a liability.



A Novel Way to Deter Monkeys from Harassing Tourists.

Let’s hope that the new species of gibbon found in Asia will not be subjected to the same treatment as these unfortunate primates, and instead, are granted full protection, which is enforced.