Swiss voters decided Sunday by referendum not to ban animal testing. More than half a million animals die from medical tests annually in Switzerland.
The initiative to ban medical experiments on animals was rejected by 79%. The Swiss government had been openly against the ban, fearing that a ban would make pharmaceutical companies leave the country.
The promoters of the ban said that there are alternatives to animal experimentation, like biochips, computer simulations or tests with small doses in humans. “Animals should not suffer for the sake of humans, it’s simple,” said Renato Werndli, the doctor who launched the initiative.
In 2020, 560,000 animals died in experiments in Switzerland; rats, mice, dogs, cats, horses, monkeys, cows, pigs, fish and birds were tested on and killed either during or after experiments.
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