Vivisection profits from torture! Protests continue all over Auckland

This morning at 7.15am, vivisectors staying at the Waipuna Hotel in Mt Wellington were woken up by animal rights activists. Activists held a loud and noisy demonstration behind the Hotel telling the vivisectors and the hotel management exactly what we think about the ANZCCART conference. A message of no compromise was given loud and clear that we are opposed to all animal testing. The organisers of ANZCCART and the Waipuna hotel management are responsible for and contribute to the death and suffering of animals in laboratories all across Australasia.
Later today, activists visited companies and organisations that are directly responsible for animal testing in Aotearoa and all over the world. These include Unilever, NIWA, the Auckland University Medical School and Novartis.

Unilever use animals to test cosmetics, toiletries, household cleaners, food additives and chemicals. They use animals such as rabbits for eye and skin irritancy tests and LD50 tests. The LD50 test involves force feeding animals with chemicals such as cleaners until half the animals die, the remainder are then killed and their bodies cut open and examined. An angry protest was held outside and we let the public and other companies in the building know that Unilever are an animal abusing scumbag company that profits from the torture of innocent animals.

NIWA in 2005 used 2,008 fish, 12 lobsters and 20 birds in experiments. 361 of the fish were used in “moderate suffering” experiments. Five activists went inside and talked to reception about the use of animals in experiments and passed around anti-vivisection leaflets in the lobby. The staff were surprised to find out about the animal testing going on and were given information about animal testing in New Zealand.

Auckland University Medical School remembered us from April and had several nervous security guards around the medical school well before we were anywhere near.

Novartis received the shortest and loudest demo. Novartis are a client of HLS (Huntingdon Life Sciences), who are one of the biggest contract animal testing companies. Novartis are involved in subsidiary transplantations of piglet organs into the neck, arms, abdomen and chests of monkeys and baboons. These primates were allowed to become severely ill and die in direct breach of legal limits on animal testing. The staff were subjected to a loud angry demonstration and they were encouraged to leave their job and find a more ethical way of living.

Throughout the demos, several cop cars and a police van full of cops turned up at companies before us, although we did give them the slip at Novartis and they arrived only as we were leaving.
While ANZCCART is one target of anti-vivisection actions, animal testing will only be stopped with ongoing and constant pressure on all the companies and organisations that directly engage in and profit from vivisection.

We will be back at Waipuna Conference Centre and Hotel tonight at 6:45pm to disrupt the ANZCCART dinner. See you there!

Contact details for Unilever, NIWA, Novartis and Auckland University:

Unilever
consumerrelations.uanz@unilever.com
CRD.Foods@unilever.com

Novartis
Novartis New Zealand Limited
6-8 Mackelvie Street
Grey Lynn
Auckland
New Zealand
Toll Free: 0800 838 909
Ph: +64 9 361 8100
Fax: +64 9 361 8181
Email: enquiries@exelon.co.nz

NIWA
Private Bag 99940, Auckland
369 Khyber Pass Road, Newmarket, Auckland
Phone +64 9 375 2090
Fax +64 9 375 2091

Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences

FMHS Postal Address
85 Park Road
Grafton
Auckland

The University of Auckland
Private Bag 92019
Auckland 1142
New Zealand
Faculty reception
+64 9 373 7599 x 89757
Faculty administration
fax: +64 9 373 7481
Medical School security desk (Unisafe):
Phone: +64 9 373 7599 extension 86081 (available 24 hours)

Tell those bastards to stop testing on animals!