SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA—A petition has been delivered to the National Assembly by Humane Society International/Korea to garner support for passage of proposed legislation to advance animal-free approaches in science and product testing.
At a ceremony held on January 31, HSI/Korea formally submitted a petition that gathered more than 66,000 signatures to parliamentarians to expedite the PAAM Act (Act on Development, Dissemination and Promotion of Use). requested enactment. An alternative to animal testing methods, first introduced by Congressman Nam in December 2020. A second bill on this topic was also proposed by Rep. Han in December 2022.
Rep. Park Hong-geun, Rep. Han Jeong-ae, Rep. Nam In-soon, eight other lawmakers from the National Assembly Animal Welfare Forum, and key figures from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the Ministry of Environment, Science and ICT attended the ceremony. .
Since August 2021, HSI/Korea has been collecting signatures in a campaign co-hosted by Lush Korea leveraging major social media outlets and screenings of HSI’s “Save Ralph.” At a cosmetics testing facility. ‘Save Ralph’ has earned him over 40 awards, including the Cannes Lions Grand Prix For Good Award. His Borami Seo, HSI/Korea Political Affairs Director, said: Replace animal testing. ”
South Korean government statistics reveal that 4.8 million animals will be used for testing in 2021, but according to a poll conducted by Realmeter on behalf of HSI/Korea, 81.6% of South Koreans agree on the need for legal assistance to develop and promote alternatives to animal testing. .
Around the world, the movement to replace animal testing and build new evaluation models and systems is accelerating human analog models, organs-on-a-chip, organoids, tissue reconstruction using 3D printing, computer modeling, and big data analysis. I’m witnessing .
South Korea has made a unique contribution to this global trend, but progress has been slowed by a lack of relevant legislation and inter-ministerial cooperation. In particular, the lack of a central body to direct initiatives to support non-animal methods has hampered the systematic and efficient implementation of related policies. We believe that we must play a strong and active role in validating, validating, and promoting methods.
Democrat Rep. Park Hong-Kun said: With over 60,000 signatures, the petition hopes to draw attention to the bill’s passage. I support the passage of legislation and interagency cooperation on this issue. ”
Borami Seo of HSI/Korea said: Passage of these bills would be a stepping stone to promote the replacement of laboratory animals. ”
The director of the Korea Alternative Animal Law Verification Center at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said, “We recognize the importance of the bill to replace animal testing and agree with the initiative. As a government, we will do our best to support its passage.” I will do my best.”
After the petition is submitted, a joint public-private forum co-sponsored by HSI/Korea will be held in the National Assembly on 8 February to gather support for passage of the bill.
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Media contact: Borami Seo, bseo@hsi.org
