The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry reported the obvious in May — the number of violent attacks by animal rights extremists in Great Britain is on the rise.
The ABPI compared the number of attacks in the first quarter of 2004 compared to the same time period in 2003. It found a rise in animal rights vandalism — in most cases, applying corrosive fluids to automobiles owned by researchers or by employees of firms that conduct business with such firms — as well as a rise in activists harassing employees at their homes.
The Independent quoted an ABPI spokesman as saying,
Pouring corrosive fluid, like brake fluid or paint stripper, on vehicles, and spraying graffiti on homes and roadways seem to be the favorite forms of attack for these criminals. The arrests [of numerous activist in March 2004] may have helped reduce attacks, but none of these cases has yet led to a conviction.
And even if they do result in a conviction, just how much time will those convicted serve? As Mark Matfield of Victims of Animal Rights Extremism told The Independent, so far activists have received nothing more than a wrist slap,
I’ve been watching animal rights activists for 15 years now, and what I’ve seen is that a slap on the wrist doesn’t deter them. They regard a few months inside almost as a badge of honor. The only thing that actually works is longer sentences of four years or more.
VARE is among a number of organizations asking the British government to pass a specific law to crack down on animal rights extremism similar to the Animal Enterprise Protection Act in the United States.
“If you had specific legislation,” Matfield told The Independent, “you could make the penalties more severe for acts of animal rights extremist directed at places of medical research, without increasing legislation against protests per se which might infringe civil liberties.”
Source:
Animal rights extremists step up attacks. Ciar Byrne, The Independent (UK), May 24, 2004.