KARACHI: Part of a global campaign to end use of animals in testing cosmetics, a signature campaign has been launched in Pakistan to urge the United Nations to adopt an international convention on this issue.

“Around 500,000 animals are harmed or killed in tests for cosmetics purposes every year. Just one ingredient in a product can result in the death of 1,400 animals,” says a press release issued by Pakistan Animal Welfare Rights (PAWS) which is collaborating with The Body Shop, a UK-based cosmetics and skincare company, for the campaign in Pakistan.

At the global level, the company has partnered with Cruelty Free International with an aim to collect eight million signatures. The target in Pakistan is 250,000 signatures by August 20, 2018.

These signatures will represent Pakistan in calling upon the United Nations to adopt an international convention that will end animal testing for cosmetics products and ingredients everywhere.

Animal tests, however, are increasingly being replaced with quicker, cheaper and more reliable non-animal methods. These modern methods are more relevant to humans and have been found to predict human reactions better than the traditional outdated animal tests. Studies demonstrate that animal tests predict human reactions by only 40 to 60pc, whereas substitutions are accurate 80pc of the time.

Eighty per cent of all countries don’t have any laws against animal testing. In 2013, the European Union banned the sale of cosmetics tested on animals. India, Israel, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, and Turkey have similar bans.

“Each time we apply that eyeliner, that purple lipstick or spray ourselves with a bug spray, spare a thought for all the innocent animals that have suffered such cruelty. Let’s demand an end to animal testing worldwide.

“Everyday items like lotions, shampoos, mouthwash, makeup, detergents, glues, artificial sweeteners, bug sprays and cleaning supplies are amongst the many chemicals tested on the eyes, skins and digestive systems of animals.

“They are routinely subjected to toxicity tests for the notorious “lethal dose” rating on household products. This involves dripping the chemical on their eyes to see how long it takes to burn their corneas, or forcing them to swallow large amounts to determine the dose that causes death. Pain relief is rarely provided and the animals are killed at the end of the experiments,” says the press release.

The online petition is available at: http://bit.ly/ForeverAgainstAnimalMTesting-PK

Published in Dawn, July 14th, 2018