World Wildlife Fund Supports Seal Hunt - Why?
News Release from Sea Shepherd
March 20, 2003
Would the World Wildlife Fund Have Supported
the Slaughter of the Passenger Pigeon? You Bet they Would.
That’s why they Support the Canadian Seal
Slaughter Today
If the World Wildlife Fund was established
back in the 19th Century, they would have indeed supported both
the commercial exploitation and the recreational hunting of the
passenger pigeon. After all, there were millions of them, and
WWF supports both the commercial slaughter and the recreational
killing of wildlife.
But, of course, they would have mounted a big
fund-raising effort to save the last few survivors during the
first decade of the 20th Century.
Yes, the pleas would have gone out begging for
money to save the passenger pigeon. The World Wildlife Fund
would have led the prayer vigil for Martha, the last Passenger
pigeon, as she lay dying in her cage at the Cincinnati Zoo in
1914.
Today they are doing this with the Harp Seal.
The WWF is supporting the increased kill
quotas and has endorsed the largest slaughter of marine mammals
on the planet.
WHY?
The World Wildlife Fund has long been a haven
for big game hunters, hunters, trappers, fur farmers, commercial
fishing corporations, and other enemies of animals.
Now, the World Wildlife Fund has publicly
endorsed the largest marine wildlife slaughter in the world.
This statement below is taken directly from
the website of the World Wildlife Fund Canada:
What WWF is Not!
WWF is not an animal welfare organization. We
support the hunting and consumption of wild animals provided the
harvesting does not threaten the long-term survival of wildlife
populations. WWF has never opposed a sustainable seal hunt in
northern or eastern Canada.
Whoa – where does this word “sustainable” come
from?
The East Coast slaughter of harp seals is not
some Inuit or Native subsistence hunt.
It is a Canadian government subsidized
slaughter and the quotas set for 350,000 a year for three years
are the largest quotas ever established. Not since 1850, when
unrestricted slaughter saw kills of a million seals a year has
there been numbers like this. There is nothing sustainable about
these numbers and the government has not produced one
peer-reviewed scientific study to justify such numbers.
Yet, the World Wildlife Fund endorses this
hunt.
The question must be asked, “Does the WWF
serve the interests of the Canadian government or does it serve
the interests of wildlife?” The answer is obvious.
THE SEA SHEPHERD CONSERVATION SOCIETY SUPPORTS
BRIGITTE BARDOT’S CRITICISM OF THE WORLD WILDLIFE FUND
Famed French Film Actress Brigitte Bardot sent
a letter on March 17th to Chief Emeka Anyaoku, the President of
the World Wildlife Fund.
In her letter Brigitte said:
“I wish to share with you my profound
indignation, deep sadness and disgust concerning the position of
World Wildlife Fund Canada supporting the new quota decided by
the government, the hunt of one million seals over a period of
three years!
How can an organization that you preside
over and that has no need to prove its reputation in the domain
of the conservation of species anymore, defend such a scandalous
position?
I went to the ice pack more than 25 years
ago, I saw the massacre of these baby seals, their head smashed
by clubs and picks, I saw these bleeding bodies, these babies
struggling for life whilst being skinned… I will never forget
these pictures, the screams of pain, they still torture me but
they have given me the strength to sacrifice my whole life to
defend the animal’s one.
I have often supported WWF, given my image
to some of its programmes, and I feel betrayed, it has attacked
my most symbolic battle.
It is easy and unfair to accuse the seals
of consuming too much fish when, during the same period of time,
floating factories decimate the sea beds, transforming this
natural richness into an aquatic desert. Seals are victims of
overflowing industrial fishing and definitely not responsible
for the deterioration of the populations, they are also victims
of the climatic changes and are directly threatened by the
melting of the ice.
Our duty is to protect them before it’s too
late!”
If you agree with Brigitte Bardot that this
hunt is despicable and is a threat to the long term survival of
the harp seal and that it’s a slaughter of abject, horrific
cruelty, then please boycott WWF.
If you are a WWF member – notify them of
cancellation of your membership.
Contact them and let them know what you think:
This is contact information from their
website:
For questions or concerns related to
membership or donations, please email gifts@wwfcanada.org.
For questions or concerns related to WWF's
conservation programs, please email panda@wwfcanada.org.
You can also reach them by mail, phone or fax:
WWF Canada
245 Eglinton Ave. East, Suite 410
Toronto, ON M4P 3J1
Canada Phone: 1-800-26-PANDA
In the Toronto area: (416) 489-8800
Fax: (416) 489-8055
http://seashepherd.org/news/media_030320_1.html
