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First of all, the cantonal initiative was declared void by the Basel City Council. The federal court has now ruled that the initiative is legally valid. At first it seemed that the initiative would only affect public bodies such as the university hospital. But constitutional law professor Markus Schefer says otherwise.
The initiative could also affect Zolli
Since the initiative would be cantonal, if accepted, it would only be implemented in the canton of Basel-Stadt. However, it is still not certain that the Basel Zoo as a public limited company will not be affected.
“The initiative is a cantonal initiative and it only applies within the framework of the canton of Basel-Stadt, not in other cantons. In this sense, it may have an impact on the zoo, as it is within the framework of the canton of Basel-Stadt, ”says Markus Schefer, professor of constitutional law at the University of Basel.
Much still open
The initiative requires that Basic right to life and physical and mental integrity for primates. What that would mean for primates is still open. “It is relatively difficult to tell even with humans. We can talk to people, we can try to find out there, we can’t do that with animals, ”explains Adrian Baumeyer, curator of the Basel Zoo.
If the initiative is accepted, it would be up to the government of the canton of Basel-Stadt how this fundamental right is implemented. “There is scientific literature that can make suggestions, but it will be the task of politics in the canton of Basel-Stadt to maintain it,” says constitutional law professor Schefer.
So the meaning of the new law is not yet clearly defined. It is also unclear who the new legal situation would affect. But above all, one thing remains completely uncertain, namely whether the initiative would be accepted by the people.
Stop animal experiments
In the canton of the city, only primates live in the Basel Zoo and the Langen Erlen Zoo. 12 different species of primates live in the Basel Zoo, in total the zoo is home to more than 120 monkeys. “We do everything we can to ensure that animals have a wonderful life with us,” says Adrian Baumeyer, curator of Zolli Basel.
In 2019, the pharmaceutical company Roche stopped researching primates in Basel. However, there were 234 in Switzerland in 2019 Animal experiments with primates were carried out in Switzerland.
If accepted, the initiative aims to avoid primate research. This means that animal experiments with primates could no longer be carried out throughout the canton. Maybe a tactic anticipate future research centers.
