The coastal city warmed up by monkeys

Puerto Rican islanders were shocked to learn that the government allowed a company to import monkeys to breed and breed.

AP said, Bioculture Ltd., a Mauritius-based company that owns 19 animal breeding centers around the world, has received permission to build monkey breeding and breeding facilities in Guayama city. in the mountainous region of southeast Puerto Rico. They wanted to turn the Caribbean islands into one of the world's most important primates, despite people's protests.

For many years Guayama authorities have had a lot of difficulties in their efforts to control the destructive behavior of several hundred patas monkeys (a long-tailed monkey) in the city. They are the descendants of monkeys that once escaped from the labs and multiply rapidly in the tropical environment. The people were too fed up with the sight of patas monkeys running into the house, destroying crops, causing traffic congestion.

A patas monkey.Photo: mac.com.

No lab needs patas monkeys because they are no longer suitable for scientific research and infection. Even zoos are not interested in them. So forest guards often trap patas monkeys to kill. Wilson Nazario Torres, a resident told AP reporters that three patas are living in his garden. They were so used to people that he could not get rid of them.

Bioculture Ltd. claims primate breeding and breeding activities will benefit Puerto Rico's economy through hiring at least 50 workers and buying fruit from local people. This seems attractive on the island where the unemployment rate is up to 16%.

'The project will bring income to many people , ' said Olga Colon, principal of a local school. Colon mobilized 300 people to sign a statement supporting Bioculture.

However, many others object to the project, among them mayor Glorimari Jaime and famous actor Benicio del Toro. They argue that monkey breeding for scientific research is immoral.

'We all know monkeys have the same thinking, personality and emotions as humans. If you are a monkey, you will find that what people do with them in medical research is like torturing prisoners of war , 'said Jane Goodall, a leading global primate expert. .

Rhesus macaque monkeys on Cayo Santiago Island (also known as Monkey Island) belong to the Puerto Rico archipelago.Photo: AP.

According to the AP, hundreds of Guayama residents signed the Bioculture lawsuit. They believed that Bioculture did not give a full statement and a public debate about the environmental impacts that the monkey breeding project could cause.

A judge will decide if the court should issue an order to stop the construction of the primates. Both the plaintiff and the defendant have the right to appeal to the appellate court.

While waiting for the court's decision, Bioculture will still ask authorities to allow monkey import into Puerto Rico. The company will start by raising 1,000 rhesus macaque golden monkeys (native to Southeast Asia).

'People go to a remote place, get little attention and buy people off with work and some economic benefits,' said Roberto Cintron, a 46-year-old resident in Guayama.

Moses Mark Bushmitz - vice president of Bioculture company - said that some groups deliberately spread confusion among the people.

Puerto Rico is a US-controlled archipelago but has not been incorporated into the United States. This archipelago is located in the northeast of the Caribbean Sea.