LET THE ANIMALS LIVE, RUSSIA!

Newsletter of the Russian animal rights organisation VITA,
2/2003 (July, August, September)

Dear friends, please meet Harmony, Faith and Muffin! The three adorable creatures and their sister Tender were rescued on the rainy day of September 25 by the VITA director Elena Maroueva, and her mother and VITA activist Valentina Maroueva. The 5 week old kittens were abandoned in a carton box at a bus stop, without food or water.

Valentina and Elena took the hungry and weak animals home, fed and gave them to drink, and made a warm bed for them. Happily, all the four kittens survived. They had stayed at Elena's place waiting to be adopted. VITA has already found a nice new home for all of them. "The animals I rescue, or live with have always been a great inspiration for my animal rights work", says Elena.

Throughout the last three months VITA also rescued a number of other street animals. For example VITA assisted in rescuing a cat who climbed a high tree and could not get down. After two weeks the local residents called VITA. VITA activist Konstantin Sabinin climbed the tree twice, but the cat only backed away from Konstantin into thinner unreachable tree branches. However the mountain climbers rescue team(!) kindly helped get the adventurous cat down. The story was covered by the Moscow press.

VITA CAMPAIGN AGAINST FURS IN RUSSIA

Furs being incredibly popular in Russia, in July VITA started its anti-fur campaign, which will be carried until February 2004.

CAGED PEOPLE FOR CAGED AND TRAPPED ANIMALS

Together with PETA, on July 8 VITA carried a peaceful action on a busy Moscow square. Dressed in fur-coats on this hot July day, and crammed into small wire cages, the activists called to Muscovites to say NO to furs. The demonstration was timed to the Fifth international fur and leather exhibition in Moscow. The action was covered by 4 radio-stations, 9 newspapers and a press agency.

KILL FOR BEAUTY?

The British children author Fiona Oakes and her mother Meg Oakes attended VITA's second action against fur and leather on August 30. Thirty activists from Moscow and Sochi were holding placards and banners calling to the public to refrain from wearing fur and leather.

A VITA activist demonstrated various products which can replace fur and leather: a synthetic coat, non-leather boots, belts, purses. During the action the activists collected signatures under the petition to Adidas to stop its kangaroo killing programs. The appeal was sent to the directors of the Adidas branch in Moscow.

The action was covered by 4 TV-channels, 4 newspapers and 4 press agencies. VITA cordially thanks Fiona and Meg Oakes and all the volunteers for attending the action.

LET THEM LIVE, RUSSIA!

The film "Let Them Live", which was produced by Mme Jeanne Marchig and THE EUROPEAN FEDERATION FOR NATURE AND ANIMALS, reveals the nightmares of trapping fur-bearing animals. The film shocked many countries throughout the eighties and the nineties of the last century. After watching the film many people throughout the world decided never to wear furs any more.

THE TIME HAS COME FOR RUSSIA! After numerous attempts to convince the directors of central TV channels to show revealing footage of trapping and fur-farming, VITA persuaded the channel "Rekor" to show some heartbreaking episodes from the film "Let them live" on September 22. The channel is available to some 40 million people throughout the whole country. VITA hopes that many of those who have seen the footage, will choose never to buy furs any more!

LOOK INTO THE EYES OF YOUR FUTURE FUR-COAT…

… These are the desperate eyes of a trapped ermine on the VITA poster-stickers, which will be hanging in the Moscow metro from now on for a whole month. "Look into the eyes of your future fur-coat" - runs the text next to the photo.

Overcrowded Moscow metro is one of the most effective places to advertise, as most Muscovites - rich and poor - prefer the metro to ever-busy roads and highways. And Muscovites are the fashion instigators for the whole of Russia.

Moscow metro directors kindly gave VITA a 60 per cent reduction for this project!

VITA cordially thanks Mme Jeanne Marchig and Mr Les Ward for helping realize this project, and the newspaper ANIMAL PEOPLE for advising VITA.

RUSSIA UNITES TO PROTECT THE WEAKEST

The second Assembly of Russian animal rights groups was held in the Russian town of Anapa on July 1-15. The participants discussed plans to work together, held educational presentations and seminars, and carried actions and demonstrations for animal rights. Four VITA volunteers took part in the Assembly. The Assembly was organised by the animal rights group GREEN LIGHTNING with VITA's assistance.

VITA TALKS TO MILLIONS OF RUSSIANS
THROUGH MASS MEDIA

VITA realizes that to gain any visible results in our animal rights work, we need to encourage people to change their perception of animals as machines to serve human needs. The quickest way to reach millions is through mass media. Throughout the last three months the following television and radio programs were broadcast:

- program on the Anapa animal rights Assembly, photographing with exotic animals (new kind of atrocious "business" and "entertainment" in Russia), and mass import of exotic animals and birds to Russia, in the program "Vremechko" on the channel TVTS, on September 25.
- radio program on the same topic on the channel "Radio of Russia", on September 3
- program on vegetarianism, the problems of fur wearing and production, stray animals, alternatives to animal experiments, the absence of animal welfare law in Russia. During the show VITA chairman Irina Novozhilova and director Elena Maroueva demonstrated a warm fur-free winter coat, alternatives to animal experiments, and offered the public to try meat substitutes. VITA supplied producers with the footage on trapping animals for furs, bullfights and intensive farming. Extracts from the films were shown during the program. Program "Ladies TV-club", channel "Rekor", on September 22.

VITA published, or was interviewed for the following media casts:

- Two general articles on various animal protection issues, vegan lifestyle with concrete examples, example of growing animal protection movement in Great Britain, interview with Fiona Oakes, etc, in the newspapers "Megapolis-express" on September 10, and "Pomogi sebe sam" on October 3.
- Article on the atrocities of mass import of exotic animals to Russia for photo- and entertainment business, newspaper "Zhizn", September 10.
- Interviews with Irina Novozhilova in the newspaper "Izvestija": on the problems of animal-related legislation in Russia and various aspects of animal abuse by humans on September 20, and on vegetarianism and problems of animal-related legislation, on September 29.
- Article on VITA animal rights and animal rescue work, newspaper "Moskovskaya Pravda", August 16

ALTERNATIVES TO ANIMAL EXPERIMENTS
IN EDUCATION

THE FIRST LIBRARY IN RUSSIA

Together with InterNICHE, VITA has set up a library of available alternatives to animal experiments in education. Schools and universities, who wish to replace animal experiments by humane alternatives, can now apply to VITA for advice and assistance with choosing the best alternatives: animal models, computer programs, attending operations of sick animals, and operating under surveillance afterwards, etc.

SPREADING THE WORD

To encourage medical, veterinary and biological schools to switch from animal experiments to humane alternatives, VITA sent out 40 copies of a catalogue of all available alternatives to animal experiments in education to Russian high schools and universities. Tens of others were addressed by VITA with a letter of appeal.

TO KILL OR TO STERILIZE?

VITA goes on with its activities to encourage Russian cities and towns to switch from shooting strays to stray sterilization programmes. VITA supplies the authorities with the information why sterilizing cats and dogs is a more effective and humane approach than shooting strays, and advises on practical aspects of sterilization programmes.

PROUD VEGETARIANS PARADE

On July 19 two VITA activists took part in the VEGGIE PRIDE parade in Stuttgart, Germany. 60 animal advocates, mainly from Germany and Switzerland marched the streets of the city. They appealed to the public to stop consuming meat, fish and dairy, and gave out leaflets, explaining why.



DEAR FRIEND, PLEASE FORWARD THIS NEWSLETTER TO THOSE WHO YOU THINK MIGHT ALSO BE INTERESTED TO READ IT.

I would be very glad to receive your opinion about VITA's work for the animals, this newsletter, or get any kind of your personal input. Please e-mail me at: maroueva-reijngoudt.vita@bluewin.ch

Tanya Maroueva,
public relations,
VITA Russia


For additional information please contact VITA at:

e-mail: maroueva-reijngoudt.vita@bluewin.ch
or: Elena-Maroueva@yandex.ru

address:
VITA, attn. Elena Maroueva
Russia 115191
Moscow
Mytnaya str 62-93

If you don't wish to receive VITA's newsletters any more, mail "unsubscribe" to: maroueva-reijngoudt.vita@bluewin.ch

If you are not on VITA's mailing list yet, but you would like to receive our free electronic quarterly newsletter, please mail your e-mail address to:
maroueva-reijngoudt.vita@bluewin.ch

THANK YOU!

Dear friend,

Thank you very much for reading VITA newsletter, and for your interest in animal rights works in Russia.

VITA needs your help to go on with our anti-fur campaign and other animal protection work. For the coming months we have planned a number of large-scale activities, aimed at decreasing fur wearing and production in Russia.

These activities must be financed, and VITA would cordially appreciate your financial support, which would go directly to the anti-fur campaign and other animal protection activities. Every donation, no matter how moderate it may be, will help us alleviate animal suffering.

Please don't send cheques - foreign cheques are very expensive to cash in Russia, but other donation means are very welcome (money transference to VITA's bank account, or via Western Union).

VITA's bank account number is: 40703978400090001768
For the Center for the protection of animal rights "VITA" 115191 Moscow, Mytnaya 62-93
VITA's bank is RESTAVRATSIYASTROYBANK, MOSCOW, RUSSIA, CHIPS: 40715
SWIFT: RESVRUMI, Communication: 912899421121

Please let me thank you cordially.

Sincerely yours,

Elena Maroueva,

VITA director

P.S: Please help VITA alleviate animal abuse, and make a donation today. THANK YOU