A Victory for Animals in the Cu Chi Tunnels!
You may recall that bears, macaques, gibbons, and pythons were being kept in appalling conditions at the entrance to the Cu Chi Tunnels outside Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. After a concerned citizen told us about this squalid roadside menagerie, PETA traveled to Vietnam to investigate. When our investigator arrived, none of the animals had food or water, and all the cages were littered with trash and feces. All the animals lived in very small cages—some completely alone and with no enrichment—for three to four years, and they did not receive adequate veterinary care. We immediately alerted our supporters around the world, and the government received a flood of angry messages.

The exhibit has been shut down! Our investigator recently returned to Vietnam after we received reports that some of the animals were gone. As it turned out, all the animals are gone. Flowers have been planted in what used to be the base of the primates’ cage, a sight that brought tears to the eyes of the investigator.
We learned that the Vietnamese Forest Protection Department had seized the animals in response to complaints from "foreigners"—that is, all of you who wrote and called. According to a representative of Education for Nature-Vietnam, who spoke to the authorities, “The rangers implanted microchips into the bears and then released all confiscated animals into a semi-wild habitat in the historical forest of the Cu Chi Tunnels.”

Thank you to everyone who wrote or called Vietnamese officials and tourist companies! Your efforts saved these animals from a lifetime of confinement. Speaking up really can make a difference!