Austrian Court: Chimp Not Legally a Person

VIENNA, Austria — A chimpanzee cannot be declared a person, Austria's Supreme Court has ruled, activists said Tuesday.

An animal rights group had sought to have the chimp, Matthew Hiasl Pan, declared a person in hopes of gaining guardianship of the animal.

The shelter where Matthew has lived for 25 years is going bankrupt, threatening to leave him homeless.

Donors have offered to help support him, but under Austrian law, only a person can receive personal gifts.

More?

FOXNews.com - Austrian Court: Chimp Not Legally a Person - Science News | Science & Technology | Technology News

Chimps the world over are considering legal action claiming defamation of character for being compared to humans!

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..

In other news, doctors have found certain operations are almost certain to cause bleeding...

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"You get the respect that you give" - cnredd

Okay--so he's not a human person. Hair splitting aside the bottom line remains as to how these chimps are going to be cared for. I'm glad there are folks out there with compassion, because the reason he's captive in the first place is pretty awful.

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Exactly...

I'm glad that donors have offered to support the Chimp. I would like to know why the Chimp cannot receive "private" gifts to a Chimp? It must have something to do with their tax structure.I cannot claim my dog as a dependant and I understand this. Something tells me there is more to this story than meets the eye...

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..

Yes, but the solution to bad law is NOT creating even more bad law...

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"You get the respect that you give" - cnredd

I agree with both of you--there is more to this story than is reported in the article, and another bad law doesn't negate a first bad law.

What qualifies as a "gift?" I give my dog "gifts" all the time. Christmas presents, toys, treats...no spending money as of yet though.

I'm just curious--what are Austria's adoption laws like?

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No and I'm not suggesting that,I believe there is more to this story than meets the eye.Austian tax laws may be far different from our own.When I donate to the Humane Society,it's tax deductible but it sounds like this may not be the case in their country.

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..