Sri Lanka Attempts to Establish Animal Research Guidelines

From the Sunday Times in Sri Lanka....

Last Monday (January 18, 2010), this country reached a milestone with regard to animal research when a booklet on the ‘Guidelines for Ethics Review of Research Proposals Involving Animals in Sri Lanka’, was launched at a simple ceremony held at the Colombo Medical Faculty presided over by the Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo, Prof. Kshanika Hirimburegama, the Dean of the Medical Faculty, Prof. Harsha Seneviratne and the faculty’s Ethics Review Committee Chairman Prof. Hemantha Senanayake.

The guidelines have been compiled by the Forum of Ethics Review Committees of Sri Lanka and the Ethics Review Committee (ERC) of the Colombo Medical Faculty after several sessions of consultations with a wide and varied group including academics from all universities across the country, government officials and animal welfare groups. The booklet has been sponsored by the World Health Organization.

The need for such guidelines was felt acutely when the National Bioethics Committee (NBC) of the National Science Foundation realized in 2003 that there was no legislation or nationally applicable codes of practice to ensure the humane treatment of animals used in research, states well-known animal lover, Dr. Malik Fernando in his ‘Background’ note.