“They’re difficult to find, there’s so much space,” Mr Van Gennep says with a grin as he hears the animals’ screams from the other side of the field. “The chimps are really excited. You can hear them screaming with pleasure and throwing stones. After all, today’s their party.”

Local opposition
It’s opening day, and dozens of guests stroll around the compound in the November sunshine and bright blue sky in their shirtsleeves. Local people stand at the fence, staring in disbelief through the almond trees towards the official cars coming and going.

Mr Van Gennep: “The people from the little town here find what we’re doing here a bit odd. Animal protection is not taken for granted in Spain. That was one of the reasons we came here, in the hope that the centre would provide an example. All those people shrugging their shoulders illustrate my point. It shows we made the right decision.”

Catalina Hernandez, a Villena councillor for the Greens, knows the obstacles the AAP has had to overcome. There was major opposition from the right-wing bloc in Villena’s town council. “The most frequently used argument was that the Dutch animals would bring diseases such as AIDS with them,” she explains. “In the end, they had to admit they had got it wrong. But you can see how that opposition continues to today. The mayor, a member of the conservative Partido Popular, is notable by his absence at this opening”.

The AAP’s party is continuing regardless. The opening of the large facility in Spain eases the pressure on the organisation’s refuge in Almere in the Netherlands. The AAP takes care of about 300 animals. Last year alone, 102 new apes, raccoons, skunks and prairie dogs were added to the list. Many of the animals have been neglected or abused after outliving their welcome in family homes, or in substandard zoos or circuses.

Championing chimpanzees
The primatologist, Jane Goodall, is known throughout the world as a champion of chimpanzees and apes. “I’ve backed this project for years,” she says. “Time and time again, I’ve tried to help with all the difficulties the AAP has had to face. It’s great that it’s worked. It’s the beginning of a better life, not just for the chimps that have been brought here now, but also for all the animals that will eventually come to live here.”

Dr Goodall agrees it would be better if it was no longer necessary to accommodate exotic animals. “We should never have taken these chimpanzees away from Africa. But it’s too late now. That means we have to care for the animals now, simply because we can’t send them back to Africa. You’d need countless centres to care for the hundreds of neglected chimps there.”

(RNW translation - mw)