The excited and anxious screeching grew louder and louder as we approached the island. It was known as Marshall or Chimp Island by the locals.
With haste, the chimpanzees headed towards the boat. Their caregivers cautioned us that we were not familiar faces, so we should wait in the boat while they got out to feed the chimps and to give them water.
It would have been a bucket list sighting had these chimps spent their entire lives in the wild, but that was not their history. Their previous home was a Biomedical research lab, owned by the New York Blood Center. The research began in the mid-1970s. Their test subjects were stolen from the wild in Liberia. For approximately thirty years, their fate were being test subjects for various diseases, mostly hepatitis. About 400 chimps died during that time.
The exploitation and cruelty caught the attention of animal activists, questioning how they could subject such intelligent sentient beings to such cruelty and exploitation. In 2016, their horror came to an end. The decision was to send them to the six islands spread across a river estuary. Because chimpanzees cannot swim, it seemed like their best solution. They were divided into groups of about 8/10 chimps on each island. These chimpanzees would never be able to go back to the wild because they had diseases inflicted on them for the research.
The island that we stopped at was one of 3 islands for the day. Their caregivers went by boat every day to feed them. At the time, their food and care were financed by the New York Blood Center. A cost of approximately 20,000 dollars a month. Three of their caregivers took us to the islands by boat, packed with food and water for the chimps. Each of them very caring and devoted caregiver. Each of them with their own sad history, having witnessed the worst of humanity during a brutal civil war.
It was a bittersweet experience watching the chimps being fed by the caregivers. A couple of chimps had babies on their backs. The cutest of babies. Those babies were never meant to be born. The females were given contraceptives, but I am not sure whether it was improper birth control; some babies were born on the islands. I remember thinking that at least they would never be subjected to being test subjects for humans, spending their lives in cages. Little did I know that the chimpanzees had another challenging time ahead of them from the very same organization that exploited them.
A few months after we arrived back in South Africa, we heard that the New York Blood Center (NYBC) had terminated its care for the chimps. Their abandonment meant that the chimps were left to die of starvation. There was no fresh, drinkable water or food on the island. They put the responsibility on the Liberian government. A country that was economically crippled and in the middle of an Ebola pandemic crisis that had escalated. Their caregivers scrambled with what little funds they had to buy fresh food from the locals. They got hold of some expats to help him, and then the Humane Society of the United States were contacted and they got involved to help the chimps.
Animal activists around the world heard about the desertion of the chimpanzees by the NYBC and took action. An NGO that profited millions of Dollars, piloted by wealthy directors living in opulence, stood firm on their decision to renege on their responsibility. Blinded by their greed, they didn’t see the defiance of their decision brewing. Animal activists relentlessly put major pressure on the NYBC to reinstate funding, as well as the NYBC’s sponsors. It took two years for VICTORY.
The visit to the island that day is a true reflection of our world and humans. One that I hope will encourage some humans to make better, kinder decisions in life.
Chimpanzees are not indigenous to South Africa, but like so many animals, they are critically endangered. With deforestation, disease and the bushmeat trade, chimpanzees could be gone from the wild in as little as ten years. We all need to care for our planet. We need to support the selfless champions on the ground rescuing and rehabilitating animals.
During our almost 2-year stay in Liberia, we rescued an orphaned baby chimpanzee. She was named Missy. Missy was a victim of the bushmeat trade; her family was killed, and the babies were sold. We rescued her from the person who bought her. Our goal was to send her to a sanctuary to be with her kind.
You can read about Missy’s story in my book – “Her name is Missy” https://www.amazon.com/Her-Name-Missy…
We will be doing a YouTube video of Missy and a short version of her rescue soon.