An NGO denounces a zoo mexican refusing to put in the cool a polar bear

AFP

AFP

Thursday, march 22, 2018 05:00

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Thursday, march 22, 2018 05:00

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MORELIA, Mexico | A canadian NGO has denounced on Wednesday the refusal by a State and a petting zoo mexican to the transfer of a female polar bear to England, and its climate cooler and more suitable.

“The government of Michoacan and the zoo violate an international agreement and prevent (the bear) Yupik live in a supportive environment”, has protested the NGO Zoocheck.

The State of Michoacan (west), famous for its warm climate, is home to for years, this female polar bear in the zoo of Morelia, the capital.

Yupik is born in the forests of Alaska, but found herself orphaned after a hunter killed his mother. In 1992, the zoo of Morelia has sought and been granted u.s. authorities permission to collect the animal, committing to him to assure conditions of life standard.

A medical examination has revealed in 2016 as Yupik suffered the consequences of an infection related to his living conditions in a hot climate and in an environment that is too confined and unsuitable to the species.

In November 2017, the zoo of Morelia and the government of the State of Michoacan have signed an agreement for the definitive transfer of Yupik to English park of the Yorkshire Wildlife, where were the guarantees of the conditions of existence adapted, the NGOS Zoocheck committing to cover all expenses.

However, “without warning and two weeks before the scheduled transfer date, the 9th of march”, the State governor, Silvano Aureoles, has taken a “unilateral decision to maintain Yupik to the zoo of Morelia. Without providing any explanation for not honouring the agreement,” said Zoochec.

“Our polar bear will continue to receive all the necessary attention to the zoo of Morelia and, above all, the affection of the inhabitants of Michoacan,” tweeted the governor on February 24.

If the government of Michoacan continues to want to keep the bear, who has spent more than 20 years in captivity, “he could expose himself to a diplomatic conflict with the United States in order to respect the agreement reached in 2017”, said Oscar Velez, representative of Zoocheck in Mexico.