LONDON - Seven leading financial investors gave their backing Saturday to shareholders of British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline PLC against 'bullying' tactics from animal rights extremists.
In a letter to the Financial Times, the institutions, who all have billions of pounds invested in the health sector, vowed to face down activists who wrote to some GSK shareholders earlier this month urging them to sell their stakes.
If they did not, campaigners -- who oppose GSK's use of medical research group Huntingdon Life Sciences which uses animals to test new medicines and vaccines -- threatened to post their personal details on a website.
The investors wrote that that they were all involved with companies 'legitimately engaged in lawful research to the benefit of society'.
'We intend to stand firm alongside the smaller shareholders in GlaxoSmithKline who have been targeted for bullying in the current campaign,' they wrote.
'It is our intention to retain substantial shareholdings in companies that carry out their legitimate activities within the law and as required by law,' they added.
'Whilst we understand the genuine concerns of animal welfare groups and support moves to reduce, refine and replace the use of animals in medical research, there is no place for intimidation and violence in this process.'
Instead, they called on anti-vivisectionists to use 'the appropriate venue rather than through intimidation of the more vulnerable'.
For their part, they said they would continue to act as 'responsible investors in and owners of companies'.
The companies signing the letter were: ABP Investments, Commonwealth Superannuation Scheme, F and C Asset Management, Hermes Investment Management, Public Sector Superannuation Fund, The Wellcome Trust and TIAA-CREF.
GSK won a court injunction Wednesday to prevent extremists sending any further letters and publish shareholders' details online.
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