NEWS
ACRES IN THE NEWS
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Agence France-Presse
19 May 2006
Monkey rescued in Singapore repatriated to India
SINGAPORE (AFP) - A monkey rescued from the illegal pet trade in Singapore was repatriated to India for rehabilitation, a local animal welfare charity said.
The female rhesus macaque spent nearly two years at Singapore Zoo where it had been taken after being rescued from a warehouse in 2004, the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) said. But as the zoo had no permanent rescue centre, the monkey, named Asha, had to find a new home.
ACRES said it found Asha a home in 2004 at the Wildlife SOS Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre in New Delhi, but it took months to secure the documents needed for the transfer.
Asha was being kept as a pet at the warehouse with a chain around her neck when she was rescued following a tip-off.
"We are relieved that Asha is being repatriated finally back to India, her country of origin," said Kartick Satyanarayan, co-founder of Wildlife SOS.
"Asha serves as a living testimony to remind everyone that it is illegal and dangerous to keep primates as pets," said Chris Furley, director of zoology and veterinary services at the Singapore Zoo.
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