NEW YORK (CNN) - Television star Pamela Anderson is leading a campaign to have the bust of Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Harland Sanders removed from the Kentucky state capitol.

In a letter to Gov. Ernie Fletcher, the former Baywatch star says suppliers for the fast food chain, now called KFC, engage in cruel and unusual treatment of chickens, including tearing the heads off of live birds, spitting tobacco into their eyes and spray-painting their faces.

TV star Pamela Anderson

Anderson wrote the letter with the help of People for the Ethical Treatment of animals. In a statement issued by PETA, Anderson said, "The bust of Colonel Sanders stands as a monument to cruelty and has no place in the Kentucky state capitol."

Brett Halle, communications director for the governor, told CNN, "We understand that people have a passion for their causes, but Harland Sanders is a beloved man, and as far as this state is concerned, he exemplifies the best of Kentucky. The governor has no intention of moving his statue. If we were going to move it, it would be to a more prominent position where more people could see it."

A spokeswoman for KFC told CNN that the letter is "just another misguided publicity stunt by PETA in their attempt to create a vegan society."

-- from CNN Business News Assignment Editor Tom Ziegler

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