Government plans to criminalise "economic sabotage" as a way of stopping intimidation tactics used by a small minority of animal rights campaigners must progress with extreme caution.
While the National Anti-Vivisection Society condemns violence and intimidation - and supports any legislation that would prevent this (indeed our own offices were attacked last week) - we believe there is a huge danger that this kind of policymaking will trample on the rights of the majority to campaign, dissent and oppose the actions of companies through legitimate tactics like consumer boycott.
The efforts of campaigners have, for many years, played a vital role in tackling the damaging impact of business across our society - from environmental protection to child labour and animal welfare. The boycotts during the anti- apartheid campaign are a good example.
But, as the Government and media remain transfixed with the activity of a small number of extremists, groups representing the law-abiding majority - like the National Anti-Vivisection Society - are left frustrated that this red herring has taken the focus from the most important issue.
The UK is locked into the now obsolete animal research methodology instead of embracing far more effective non-animal methods. The Government continues to support and finance more totally unnecessary monkey laboratories.
We are now being told animal research is being driven abroad, yet the number of animal experiments in the UK is rising, and already more monkeys are experimented on here than anywhere else in Europe. Why?
We all need to be protected from extremists, but any measures to restrict the right to dissent and protest may threaten the very democracy we are trying to protect.
JAN CREAMER, Chief Executive, National Anti-Vivisection Society
