Contact Information: Contact: Lisa Beal Campaigns Director, LCA (818) 681-3672 lisa@lcanimal.org
Group Condemns Endangered Mountain Gorilla Killings
| Source: Last Chance for Animals
LOS ANGELES, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- January 18, 2007 -- Rebels in eastern Congo have killed and
eaten two silverback mountain gorillas and officials fear that more of the
endangered animals may have been slaughtered. Approximately 700 mountain
gorillas remain in the world; 380 of them are in the mountains straddling
the borders of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda in Central Africa.
Chris DeRose, President and Founder of Last Chance for Animals (LCA), a non
profit animal rights organization based in Los Angeles, having just
returned from studying the mountain gorillas in Africa, condemns the
senseless killing. Last year LCA's supporters rallied to raise money to
provide rangers in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest Nation Park with
much-needed handheld radios to aid them in protecting the gorillas. LCA
vows to continue spearheading the fight to save these majestic animals.
"The mountain gorillas are some of the most magnificent animals in the
world. The day I arrived in Uganda, a baby gorilla was born. During the
troubled labor, an older, more experienced, gorilla acted as a midwife,
helping and adjusting the head to work the baby out of the womb. After
delivery, she gently handed the baby to the new mother. Later, four of the
extended gorilla family sat around the new baby and looked upon the newborn
in what appeared as amazement. It was truly awe inspiring and strengthened
my resolve to stop these animals from perishing from the earth. The recent
story of the murdered gorillas should be a call to action for every person
interested in conserving one of the most endangered animals in the world.
To think that rebels are killing them, much less eating them makes me sick
to my stomach," says DeRose.
Chris DeRose has done over 10 treks with the mountain gorillas in Rwanda
and Uganda and has extensive footage of each of the families he has
visited. If you have any questions, he is available at 310-271-6096 x27.
Go to www.lcanimal.org to find out how you can help in the fight to save
the mountain gorillas. (Visit
http://premium.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/africa/01/17/Congo.gorillas.ap/index.html
for the original story)
Last Chance for Animals (LCA), a national animal rights organization based
in Los Angeles, has been active for more than two decades. LCA was the
subject of the recent HBO documentary, "Dealing Dogs." LCA fights for the
rights of animals by conducting investigations that expose animal cruelty.
For more information, visit www.LCAnimal.org.