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Now that their role in vaccine research is over, 117 chimpanzees in Japan
face an uncertain fate. The chimps were imported in 1975 for a hepatitis B
vaccine programme and are now in a holding facility run by the drug company
Sanwa Kagaku. The company says it can no longer afford the annual £1.5
million upkeep. There are only a few comparable chimp facilities in the world,
and all are government-subsidised. But the Japanese government is reluctant to
take responsibility for the chimps.