First they murder the dogs, then they cry to the media that they get threatened by emotionally unstable people. Criminals playing the victim card: how many times have we seen this already?
Six healthy Labradors were murdered by the University of Gothenburg as part of a lab experiment aimed at developing teeth implants for humans and heavily financed by a company named Sirona.
I would like to share my views and my comment with regard to these so-called experiments.
My opinion is that they should not have been carried out in the first place and they likely would not have been, in fact, had a different EU country been involved. Apparently, the experiments had the imprimatur of a rather shadowy ethical committee: this alone sounds ridiculously suspicious. What ethical principles have been actually applied in order to come to the final decision? And what do we know about this committee and its specific competencies? My recent personal experience with the Swedish Board of Agriculture or Jordbruksverket (which I am discussing in a paper I am currently writing) has led me to the conclusion this organisation is incompetent when called in to express opinions with reference to animal welfare matters. Furthermore, these experiments appear to be in breach of recent EU directives and do not respect international laws, contrary to what the University of Gothenburg is rushing to say.
On a pathetic attempt to justify these horrific actions, the University of Gothenburg has released a patronising, puerile statement (that can also be found on their Facebook page) where they have minimised the outrage from protesters to a mere emotional issue. So, years of studies on vivisection and its uselessness (studies initiated by extraordinary scientists like Pietro Croce, amongst others) have been reduced to treating people like a bunch of twelve-year-olds demonstrating against the killing of dogs just because they have feelings. I reckon the statement from the university was constructed in the mind on an actual child. Bear in mind, emotions do exist because we are sentient beings with emotions: for heaven’s sake, do they think we should not have them? However, the protests against the use of dogs in the experiments were rightfully based on ethical issues and scientific facts.
In truth, if properly investigated (by launching a public inquiry on the activities behind closed doors of these pseudo-scientists), it would bring to light the unnecessary abuse and exploitation carried out for the mere purpose of profit.
What has changed in this case is that, perhaps for the very first time, the international scientific community and worldwide public opinion are now aware of what happens to animals in this country.
I have been receiving countless of messages from people from all over the world telling me they thought Sweden was a civilised country. Ha! I guess this is the perception from the outside, but I have been living here long enough to see how far from truth this actually is.
I would also like comment on another unpleasant fact. The University of Gothenburg has started to claim that its staff has been receiving threats. This is a classic behaviour known in psychiatry as self-victimisation, and it is a personality disorder. It is a fabrication of victimhood in order to manipulate others. I would not be surprised if these alleged threats were somehow fabricated ad hoc; it seems quite reasonable considering how Swedish people are definitely not the kind of people who would expose themselves to the point of threatening others. They are so fearful of ‘authorities’ and of the consequences of actions that would go against the status quo, it would be unnatural for them to be so bold. I have never seen it in all the years I have lived in Sweden and don’t believe this is the case either.
Also, it is utterly shameful to involve the police into this collective paranoia. As the daughter of a police officer myself, I believe the police should be respectfully allowed to do their job which does not involve babysitting a bunch of paranoid cry-babies. There are mental institutions for that purpose, and if you don’t have them, it is still nothing a good psychiatrist would not be able to cure. Still, it is quite sad and pathetic to see the extent to which these troglodytic individuals would go to in order to get some validation for the unscientific, unethical and downright illegal actions they have committed.
The outrage will not go away, and hopefully the plight of animals in Sweden will finally be known where it counts, and the arbitrary interpretation and application of ethical and scientific principles on behalf of Swedish authorities and governing bodies will be treated accordingly within the EU institutions and agencies to which Sweden has to answer, once and for all.
