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Animal rights campaigners continue protest

8:10am Saturday 29th August 2009 in News

PROTESTERS say they will continue to demonstrate outside a Hampshire business until the controversial Huntingdon Life Sciences closes for good.

A group of around three protesters armed with banners and a megaphone stand outside Ciba Vision in Hedge End, Southampton every week.

The protesters, part of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC), believe Ciba Vision company is buying from the life sciences firm and campaign for it to stop every week.

Huntingdon is targeted regularly by animal rights activists campaigning against the testing of animals at the site.

Protests, which have been taking place for two years, are limited by a court injunction to two hours a week and must be in designated areas away from the building and using only one megaphone on a medium volume.

Police attend the demonstrations every week and usually send down specialist animal rights officers from Netley.

Dave Thompson, a protester from Fareham, said: “My view is if we target the customers and suppliers of Huntingdon Life Sciences, who profit from them, then eventually they will have to close.

“The tests they carry out are only 20 per cent effective and this is a company that is responsible for the deaths of 500 animals a day.

“We intend to stage these protests every week until Huntingdon Life Sciences is closed for good.”

Ciba Vision declined to comment on either the protests or their involvement with Huntingdon Life Sciences.

Comments(22)

10 Minute Man says...
9:01am Sat 29 Aug 09

"20 percent effective" ?

What, exactly, does that mean? You've somehow placed a numeric value on "effectiveness". What is the basis, the parameter(s), how have they measured it at only 20% versus a baseline or achieveable target of 100%? Could you over-achieve. Would it be worth it then? Oooh, but 20%, that "sounds low" doesn't it. Garbage numbers, garbage science. Immediately can't take anything they say seriously. If you damage your credibility with this sort of rubbish, you loose the scientifically literate community immediately.
BTW, don't point me to some internet source in response. give me a well established peer-reviewed journal reference. Or withdraw this and STFU.

500 animals a day? I doubt this very much - where is the data? What kind of animals ? Rats? We kill more than that for mere convenience through the pest control industry. At least these iddle fluffeh animalz are serving a purpose.


Do you think they actually want to breed, keep, maintain a bunch of animals? They are inconsistent, expensive, smelly, require tons of administration and licensing. But its the best option they currently have and within the regulatory framework which the government have determined. If you don't like it, create and prove viable alternatives and lobby the government to accept them.


Oh, and terrorising people, digging up the remains of dead grandmothers etc, just alienates the vast majority who don't like animal suffering either but on a sensible balance will accept the minimum necessary for human benefit.

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Vonnie says...
9:16am Sat 29 Aug 09

These people make me sick. Half the time they don't know what they are talking about, and the other half of the time they exaggerate to prove an emotional, rather than scientific, point.

As for the police time that they are wasting which I am helping to pay for- that really annoys me.


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Andy Locks Heath says...
9:21am Sat 29 Aug 09

Well said 10MM. Sadly you will not elicit a sensible response from anyone who "sympathises with animals" as they are invariably incapable of formulating a logical and consistent argument. I'd like to see them show the same bravery and dedication at a dog fight or badger bait, but they are strangely uninterested. As you say someone will google up some false statistic propagated from an extremist website and quote it as justification when in truth animal "rights" protestors seem less interested in animal welfare than in finding a license for their hatred of other groups of (successful) people. It must be great for Dave Thompson having to live with that massive chip on his shoulder for all these years then suddenly finding an excuse to legitimise and justify all that hate and terror. I bet he feels like a real eco warrior as he crouches outside some victim's house in the dark with a can of petrol.

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Andy Locks Heath says...
9:21am Sat 29 Aug 09

Well said 10MM. Sadly you will not elicit a sensible response from anyone who "sympathises with animals" as they are invariably incapable of formulating a logical and consistent argument. I'd like to see them show the same bravery and dedication at a dog fight or badger bait, but they are strangely uninterested. As you say someone will google up some false statistic propagated from an extremist website and quote it as justification when in truth animal "rights" protestors seem less interested in animal welfare than in finding a license for their hatred of other groups of (successful) people. It must be great for Dave Thompson having to live with that massive chip on his shoulder for all these years then suddenly finding an excuse to legitimise and justify all that hate and terror. I bet he feels like a real eco warrior as he crouches outside some victim's house in the dark with a can of petrol.

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Cyber-Fug says...
9:21am Sat 29 Aug 09

I assume that these "activists" will also refuse any life-saving treatment that they could need in the future if the said treatment involved any form of animal experimentation ?
IMHO, they are bunch of sandal wearing freaks with little else to do !!

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Andy Locks Heath says...
9:33am Sat 29 Aug 09

Ditto Vonnie and Cyber Fug.Looks like I have finger trouble this morning.

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senseofsouthampton says...
10:45am Sat 29 Aug 09

"A group of around three protesters"

Surely it's not that hard to count them? Around three?

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mick sterbs says...
11:09am Sat 29 Aug 09

Animals don't have rights!

we are the master race and we should use animals in any way we see fit to protect ourselves from disease etc whilst trying our best to not make the animal suffer more than is needed to complete any tests.

as for any veggies out there, unless animals start to taste horrible i'll keep eating them (and they are made of meat-nice). how can you give up bacon? or sausage? or beef.....

sorry to go on, i'm off for brekkie.

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Duncan Disorderly says...
11:29am Sat 29 Aug 09

The Animal Rights protest movement is totally discredited by the criminality in which they indulge to force their opinions on everybody else.

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enay says...
12:26pm Sat 29 Aug 09

I am appalled at the above posts. What a totally selfish and ignorant point of view. Are you really only interested in your own safe little worlds having no compassion for other creatures or their suffering? Get informed about animal experimentation etc. and then come back and tell me you don't care.

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goard says...
12:29pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Animal Rights - We are animals, so put yourselves in that cage, put yourself in that young persons hands who is trained to pierce your body with a lethal weapon - what has happened with the human race?

goard

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Cyber-Fug says...
12:52pm Sat 29 Aug 09

enay wrote:
I am appalled at the above posts. What a totally selfish and ignorant point of view. Are you really only interested in your own safe little worlds having no compassion for other creatures or their suffering? Get informed about animal experimentation etc. and then come back and tell me you don't care.
OK, done that now....... nope ! i still dont give a toss about the fluffy bunnies and rats nor mice.....if experimenting with animals saves the lives of my family and future generations then so be it !

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mick sterbs says...
1:42pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Cyber-Fug wrote:
enay wrote: I am appalled at the above posts. What a totally selfish and ignorant point of view. Are you really only interested in your own safe little worlds having no compassion for other creatures or their suffering? Get informed about animal experimentation etc. and then come back and tell me you don't care.
OK, done that now....... nope ! i still dont give a toss about the fluffy bunnies and rats nor mice.....if experimenting with animals saves the lives of my family and future generations then so be it !
was already informed, don't care and did'nt care.

eat em, test on them, anything if it makes our lives better.

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enay says...
3:56pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Like I said - selfish and ignorant. One day you'll find life isn't all about you. As for saving lives it's not going to happen no matter how many creatures (which includes cats and dogs and primates) are endlessly tortured doing the same experiments over and over again many of which are for the cosmetics industry. Have a nice, pain-free life!

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Andy Locks Heath says...
4:02pm Sat 29 Aug 09

enay wrote:
I am appalled at the above posts. What a totally selfish and ignorant point of view. Are you really only interested in your own safe little worlds having no compassion for other creatures or their suffering? Get informed about animal experimentation etc. and then come back and tell me you don't care.
Animal experimentation is only performed when necessary and when a simulation or chemical analysis is insufficient. There would be far more thalidomide style catastrophes were it not for the limited experimentation that occurs. You can't just look at one side of the picture Enay, you must also assess the benefit, but f you think the life of a child with cystic fibrosis and the life of a mouse are equal then I can't help you - in fact nobody can. And when you say "Get informed" perhaps you can help by telling us just one single instance performed by Huntingdon Life Sciences that did not conform with the strict guidelines of the law and then tell us where your proof is (somebody told somebody who told somebody who posted it on a SHAC website probably) I am neither selfish nor ignorant but I'd be interested in your biology and chemistry qualifications. Care to tell us?

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mick sterbs says...
5:35pm Sat 29 Aug 09

enay wrote:
Like I said - selfish and ignorant. One day you'll find life isn't all about you. As for saving lives it's not going to happen no matter how many creatures (which includes cats and dogs and primates) are endlessly tortured doing the same experiments over and over again many of which are for the cosmetics industry. Have a nice, pain-free life!
I will have a nice relatively pain free life because people have tested medicines on creatures for my benefit and i am benefiting-great.

no one enjoys testing on animals but it can be the nearest we get to find out if it'll work before testing on people.

animals are just that animals, we humans must always look after ourselves before animals.

I am not selfish or ignorant but you are deluded and emotional to the point of tears I'd guess. console yourself with a veggie burger while taking off you plastic shoes......

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enay says...
7:04pm Sat 29 Aug 09

Visit the Humane Society International (HSI) website to learn more about animals used in experiments internationally. Are you telling me that thalidomide was not tested on animals? If you don't think there should be more humane alternatives then I can't help you. My comments were clearly of a more global nature and not directed at any one establishment. I know very little about Huntingdon and you don't need qualifications for compassion. If it worked after all the millions of creatures who have been abused I guess there would not be any sickness or diseases left. Surprisingly veggie burgers and plastic shoes are not part of my lifestyle. My final word, good-bye

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Andy Locks Heath says...
8:48pm Sat 29 Aug 09

You can choose to run away or stay and discuss - but people will draw their own conclusions if you run away. Firstly the laws on animal testing in this country are far more rigorous than in most others - why not go and protest in some less developed countries including our East European EU partners? Is it because the police are a little less sympathetic? Are our brave Eco warriors actually a little scared of being hurt? Yes, thalidomide shows that no testing can be absolutely guaranteed to be safe, what it does NOT show is that animal testing is useless - all you can do is reduce risk and I would say that considering the huge number of drugs that never reach market because of detected side effects that animal testing has saved countless thousands of deaths and disabilities. And when you talk of "Millions" of animals are you including those used for food, because your numbers are ridiculously exaggerated. And if you think you have a monopoly on compassion you are arrogant and mistaken. What you do have is the kind of cloying sickly sentimentality towards animals that others above harpooned effectively. I have seen more compassion from a beef farmer towards his animals than from any so called animal activist - a good farmer cares for the wellbeing of his animals without trying to anthropomorphise and cuddle them - when you understand the truth of that you are on the road to wisdom, but somehow I don't think you have the will to set out.

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stay local says...
3:51am Sun 30 Aug 09

What a set of compete prats. Ok they close down Huntingdon science in the UK, but there is still a need for animal testing, so a company is formed in any number of countries where there is not the protection from animal welfare groups, where animal suffering is considered normal.

You have not erased the problem but exacerbated it, is it not better to support and regulate animal testing under controlled circumstances rather than push it abroad where we have no control?
We have already seen this with IVF babies being born to senior citizens to the horror of the general public and the subsequent early death of one of these Mothers leaving the children as orphans.

Are the people protesting the vegan, whole food, macro biotic, alternative medicine people…..if so are they not the one endangering exotic species such as tigers by pedalling the myth alternative medicines such as homeopathy and stimulants such as rhino horn and tigers testis .

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JayneM says...
12:38pm Sun 30 Aug 09

Using one species of animal as a model for another species is, scientifically, fundamentally flawed. There is no a priori reason to believe that the reaction of the model species will be the same as the target species. Each species differs in it genetic makeup: each species has different anatomy, physiology and biochemistry. Different species get different diseases, and metabolise and react to drugs in different ways. This is why vivisection does not work, and this is why we must demand modern methods of medical research based on sound scientific concepts. For peer reviewed scientific publications that show the inefficacy of animal experimentation, please see this link: http://animalexperim
ents.info/studies/st
udies.htm
For examples of modern medical research producing real information that is applicable to humans, see for example the work of the Dr Hadwen Trust or the Lord Dowding Fund.

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housewife says...
4:55pm Sun 30 Aug 09

Do all SHAC supporters also not accept;
antibiotics
antivirals (including tamifu)
anti-inflamatories (ibuprofen, paracetamol etc)
all surgery
Statins
warfarin
???

In fact if they ever darken the door of a GP or an A&E department they are
HYPOCRITES

or would they rather the stage A tests were done on THEM rather than rats?

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Condor Man says...
5:54pm Sun 30 Aug 09

I sincerely hope that none of these protesters ever needs medical treatment as much, as mentioned above, has been gleaned from animal research. It's a sad reflection on our society when people put animals in front of humans.

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