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March
16, 2007 - A Global Plea Yesterday compassionate people gathered worldwide to protest Canada’s seal hunt. From The Hague to Halifax, colourful events demonstrated public opposition to the slaughter and shared a common plea to the Canadian government: end this baby seal kill forever. I stood on the steps of Parliament Hill in Ottawa, surrounded by a large crowd of Canadians. With our handmade signs held high, we demanded Prime Minister Stephen Harper take action on behalf of the overwhelming majority of Canadians who oppose the hunt. As politicians passed by I talked about the unacceptable suffering I’ve witnessed – the wounded seals left in agony, the seals skinned alive. Metres away, people in seal skin jackets hurled insults at us. In a desperate attempt to counter our event, the Newfoundland government spent tens of thousands of dollars to bring these sealing industry representatives to Ottawa. Paid industry lobbyists chanted “culture and tradition,” as if either could justify the cruel slaughter of baby seals for fashion items. Watching them, I felt a strange sense of optimism. After all, the presence of these “protesters” is strong evidence of the desperation of the sealing industry. For the first time in many years, they are on the defensive. We are winning, and both sides clearly know it. Posted on March 16, 2007 at 03:29 PM
At least 354,344 seals were killed in Canada's commercial seal hunt last year. Almost all of them were babies as young as 12 days. I get asked all the time about how individuals can help stop the hunt, how they can make a difference. One of the most important things you can do right now is to stop buying Canadian seafood. Sign the pledge to boycott Canadian seafood, then pass it on to friends. This boycott is one of our most effective weapons against the hunt. When you buy Canadian seafood you are putting money into the industry responsible for this slaughter. Stand with me, sign the pledge, and help send a clear message to Canada’s fishing industry to end this cruel hunt for good. Posted on March 19, 2007 at 05:41 PM
Right now in the Gulf of St. Lawrence baby seals are dying by the thousands. And the seal hunt has not even begun. The pups must remain on sea ice until they are old enough to swim, but global warming is fast destroying their habitat. This year the ice formed late and, once it did, was very thin. Winter storms quickly broke up the ice, sweeping it – and more than 260,000 newborn seal pups – into the Atlantic Ocean. High offshore winds and ocean swells continue to smash the remaining ice into tiny pieces. The seal pups, now just a few days old, are falling one by one into the water. The pups are not yet strong enough to swim, and they are dying. Some believe hundreds of thousands of pups may perish before the seal hunt even begins. Yet as the remaining pups cling to melting ice pans, the sealers prepare their boats to depart for another hunt Today I fly to the ice floes to view this devastation firsthand. The HSUS will be on the front lines as this tragedy unfolds, bearing witness with our cameras. But we need your help to stop this slaughter for good. Posted on March 21, 2007 at 10:57 AM
Today Greenpeace Canada, the World Society for the Protection of Animals and the Green Party of Canada appeared with me in Ottawa to make a joint plea to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to stop the commercial seal hunt. More than 250,000 pups were estimated to have been born in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence this year. But the thin and fragile ice they were living on was swept out of the Gulf and straight into the Atlantic Ocean earlier this month. As the ocean swells and high winds smash up that ice even more, the pups are being forced into the water. They are too young to swim and they are dying by the thousands.
Tragically, when The HSUS ProtectSeals team flew over the Atlantic Ocean today in search of the seals, they found just a few still alive. The seals clung to small pans of ice floating in the vast ocean, alone and helpless in the midst of the melting ice. Unbelievably, these few seals – and the tiny, broken bits of ice floating on the ocean surface – appear to be all that is left of the once spectacular harp seal nursery in the Gulf. I can't bear to think about what happened to so many of the newborn seals. I know we can't stop the devastating effect global warming will have on the ice in the coming weeks. But the Canadian government can make sure the survivors are not clubbed and shot to death for their fur just days from now. Please send a message to Prime Minister Harper and ask him to act immediately to protect the seals. Posted on March 22, 2007 at 07:09 PM
I flew over the Gulf of St. Lawrence yesterday by helicopter and witnessed an ecological tragedy. Right now, the critical habitat of harp seal pups is fast being destroyed by global warming. Ice cover in the Gulf is at a record low and conditions in the Front – the other area where commercial sealing happens – are not much better. High winds and ocean currents have pulled the fragile ice and the pups on it out of the Gulf and into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Breton. These defenseless pups are now fighting for their lives as their habitat melts from under them. We are predicting there may be 100 percent mortality – it’s an absolute disaster. Watch yesterday’s footage to see what the seal pups have been up against. No responsible government would allow this hunt to go ahead given the circumstances, but the hunt is scheduled to open just days from now. Contact Stephen Harper today and tell him to shut down this hunt before it’s too late. Posted on March 22, 2007 at 02:56 PM
The seal
pup tragedy continues to unfold east of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Today
we flew over the area where the Canadian government told us the seal
pups should be. But instead of the 260,000 pups that were supposed to
be here, we saw only one.
I just cannot believe Canada’s leaders could allow this population - already devastated by climate change - to be subjected to a commercial slaughter for fur. I take heart in knowing that compassionate leaders in Europe are taking steps to close the markets for seal products. The end of this hunt is in sight at last. Posted on March 23, 2007 at 07:36 PM
Yesterday we flew over the Gulf of St. Lawrence for two hours trying to find seals. We covered the areas that satellite images indicated had the most solid ice in the Gulf but all we saw were very broken pans, barely large enough to support a single seal. We passed a handful of adult harp seals scattered across the meager floes, but no pups. Still, the sealing boats are gearing up in the Magdalene Islands and we think they may leave as early as today. Which means the seal hunt may start this week. Because there are no live seal pups in the southern Gulf, it is likely the larger vessels will go north, into the Strait of Belle Isle. There, a small number of pups have been spotted by the Canadian government, which provides free flights for the sealing industry to locate the pups. I cannot believe that the government will allow this slaughter to proceed, but I know in my heart they will. The bad ice conditions have likely already caused hundreds of thousands of pups to die. The hunters will find the remaining pups with the help of the Canadian government, and they will club and shoot them to death to make fashion items. Whatever happens, we will be there to bear witness, and to expose the plight of these baby seals to the world. Posted on March 26, 2007 at 03:14 PM
In the nine years I have observed the seal hunt, I've never seen conditions as bad as those I've witnessed in the past few days. Nothing could have prepared me for this devastation. The seals' habitat is melting from under them and we are anticipating nearly 100 percent mortality among the more than 260,000 seal pups the Canadian government indicates were born this year in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. Yesterday we flew for hours over the northern Gulf near the Strait of Belle Isle. We found ice that looks just like the ice we saw in the south - tiny pans surrounded by areas of open water. We spotted a couple hundred adult seals, but no pups. Seeing those adult seals yesterday was amazing. The sun reflected off their silvery fur as they played in the water and at the edge of the ice. These are the lucky ones - adult seals are not the target of this hunt. All signs point to Canada moving ahead with this cruel commercial slaughter of seals. The Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans is expected to announce plans and a quota for this year's hunt on Friday. And, right now, the Canadian government is flying over the ice floes, conducting free surveys for the sealing industry to find the pups. The sealers are preparing their vessels and, just days from now, they will search out and kill every seal pup that remains. The baby seals will not stand a chance; the hunters will know exactly where to find them. It's heartbreaking. We are so close to ending this slaughter for good but we need you to help us. Posted on March 28, 2007 at 10:39 AM
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has just announced that despite the ecological tragedy that unfolded in the Gulf of St. Lawrence this month, the commercial seal hunt will proceed.
Bad ice conditions have already likely caused hundreds of thousands of helpless seal pups to perish. Now, in a reckless and politically motivated move, the Department has authorized sealers to kill another 270,000 seals in the commercial seal hunt. The sealers are ready. Their boats have been fueled up and loaded with supplies, and some have already departed for the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence, where the first stages of the hunt are expected to take place. The Canadian government has flown over the ice floes to locate the few surviving seal pups and they are reporting those locations to the sealers. And the Canadian Coast Guard is ready to break paths through the remaining ice for the sealing vessels. Tomorrow the Canadian government will announce when the seal hunt will start. The ProtectSeals team is standing by and, when this hunt begins, we will be there to bear witness and expose the plight of the baby seals to the world. It feels strange to be back here in Newfoundland, where I grew up, waiting to witness this slaughter. I can’t help but wonder how something as brutal and ugly as the commercial seal hunt can possibly go on in a place as startlingly beautiful as this. Posted on March 29, 2007 at 02:42 PM
I made my way across the floe, my gaze falling on the blue and purple hues of the ice. Looking out over the ice landscape, I felt as if I had come home. There is no place on earth like this - the peace and the quiet and the innocence of the pups surround you entirely. A handful of baby seals were there, basking in the sun. We managed to get close to one who was just three weeks of age. His sweet face looked up at me from across the ice, and all at once, the tragedy of this impending hunt struck me full-force. In just a few days, the boats will come, and the pristine ice will be transformed into an open air slaughterhouse. 270,000 will be brutally clubbed and shot to death to make fashion accessories. My new friend will be searched out and slaughtered, his carcass tossed carelessly into the sea. As we flew away from the ice, I wondered why it is that the sealers don't see what I do: a wildlife spectacle so beautiful it takes your breath away. As long as I live, I will never understand how anyone can come here and destroy something like this. As we flew back to land, we were all silent - knowing that when we return, this place of beauty and peace may no longer exist.
Posted on March 30, 2007 at 11:51 PM
I was appalled by yesterday's announcement from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. I can't believe that the Canadian government has authorized a quota of 270,000 seals after we've just had this ecological disaster. The Canadian government and fishing industry will pursue this hunt as long as we allow them to. That's why it is so important to boycott Canadian seafood products and shut down markets for seal products around the world. Watch our video reaction to yesterday's announcement and then sign the pledge to boycott Canadian seafood. You'll team up with more than 350,000 people who are using their buying power to keep the pressure on Canada to end the seal hunt. And stay tuned this afternoon - the ProtectSeals team is standing by for an announcement on the hunt start date. Posted on March 30, 2007 at 01:16 PM Frustrating
News as Government Prevents Observation
The commercial seal hunt will open in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence (map) tomorrow at dawn. This is the area we were based in earlier this week, searching for seal pups we couldn't find. In hindsight, I can understand why I saw no pups - the Department of Fisheries and Oceans now admits that 90 percent or more of the pups born in the southern Gulf likely died this year because of the devastating ice conditions. It is inconceivable to me that they are allowing the handful of pups who survived to be clubbed and shot to death. But the hunt will go on, and those pups, who I last saw clinging desperately to tiny pans of ice, will be slaughtered. To make matters worse, we have just been told that we will be prevented from bearing witness to this portion of the hunt. The Canadian government has refused to issue observation permits for all journalists and others who wish to view the slaughter in the southern Gulf, claiming there will not be enough sealing boats in the area to warrant our attention. With this decision, they are preventing any documentation of the opening days of the commercial seal hunt. We all feel so frustrated. The Canadian seal hunt occurs in public space, and observation of this activity is a right guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms - not an arbitrary privilege to be granted by a federal government department. Thankfully, we have been assured that permits will be issued in time for us to observe the seal hunt in the northern Gulf, which will begin on Wednesday. There are reports that the Magdalene Islands sealing vessels have already departed for this area. When they arrive, we will be here to meet them. Posted on April 01, 2007 at 12:59 PM
I was struck by the overwhelming commitment of the dedicated group on the call, who gathered at 73 house parties across the country and in Ontario to help send a message to abolish the hunt. As we prepare to once again bear witness to this brutal slaughter, we are all trying to stay positive. Tonight's call was a fantastic reminder of the fact that we are not alone up here. We are
joined by so many dedicated people the world over who are working every
bit as hard as we are to bring this needless slaughter of defenseless
baby seals to an end. Knowing that you are standing by the ProtectSeals
team gives us the strength to continue. Thank you so much for your generosity,
and for being such a powerful voice for these helpless seals. Sealers
Shoot Few Remaining Pups
Canada's 2007 commercial seal hunt started today in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. The slaughter moves to the northern Gulf on Wednesday. Sealers have arrived, and the few pups that survived the devastating ice conditions this year are now being slaughtered without mercy. We know sealers are shooting at these pups that cling helplessly to tiny pans of ice floating in the sea. Some are still not yet old enough to survive in the water; they have no way to escape. In the years I have observed this hunt, I've seen so much of this kind of killing. The pups watch with frightened eyes as the sealers descend on them with their clubs and guns, forced at such a young age to understand the full extent of human violence and greed. The thin and broken ice this year will mean even greater suffering for the pups. The Canadian government admits tens of thousands of seals that are clubbed and shot near open water each year are wounded, but then slip beneath the surface of the water where they die slowly and are never recovered. For my government, the countless thousands of suffering animals is an acceptable loss –- casualties of an industry they are determined to allow to continue. For me, they are yet another reason this hunt must be shut down for good. The clock is ticking. In less than 48 hours, the seal hunt will begin in earnest in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence. The sealing boats are coming; they will be in position tomorrow. Here in Newfoundland, the ProtectSeals team has undertaken a monumental logistical operation to ensure we will be ready to meet them. As we prepare
to document another slaughter, I cannot believe we are here again -
that our efforts have not yet been enough to stop the hunt. But in my
heart I also know we are very, very close to ending this atrocity. We
may have lost the battle to stop the 2007 seal hunt, but we are about
to win the war. We Will Document This Slaughter
On the eve of the commercial seal hunt opening in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (map), the entire ProtectSeals team has finally obtained observation permits from the federal government. We will all bear witness to this tragedy, and our images will be made available to the world. But there is frustrating news. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has stipulated only two of our helicopters may be in the hunt area at any given time. This will make it difficult for us to get all of our observers up to the ice floes as quickly as we had hoped. But the ProtectSeals team will find a way, and when the sealers begin to slaughter seals, we will be there. During the past few days we have flown over the northern Gulf in search of the tens of thousands of seal pups that the Canadian government has insisted were there. But during our flights we found only a dozen pups. And today, the DFO admitted there are very few seals, which means many have likely died already because of the devastating ice conditions. Still, the boats have come to hunt.
Somewhere out there the baby seals sleep, oblivious to the violence that will begin just hours from now. My heart breaks at the thought of another slaughter. For all these years, I have come to this place to witness the seals' suffering. Each year as spring arrives, a sense of despair slowly settles over me. For me, the melting snow and budding leaves are signs of impending death and suffering. For the baby seals, it is the end. Posted on April 03, 2007 at 08:53 PM Dawn in Newfoundland; Washington Post Says Pups Drowned in Melting Ice It's just beginning to get light here as dawn breaks here on Newfoundland's coast. We know sealing boats are already in place to begin clubbing and shooting seal pups, and I am about to leave for the ice floes. Also this morning, The Washington Post reported on what we've watched firsthand - the habitat of the seal pups melting from under them: ...as Canada's annual seal hunt begins, but a succession of unusually warm winters in the Gulf of St. Lawrence already has drowned thousands of the animals. They also report on our efforts to stop this hunt forever: The United States banned imports of seal products in 1972, and several European countries have moved to impose bans or restrictions. The Humane Society has promoted a boycott of Canadian seafood products to try to end the seal hunt. Help the seals right now by joining the boycott and telling friends to join with you. If you've already signed, thank you for standing with us. If you want to do more, you can still donate or take a number of other actions to help. We are braving some snow and freezing rain this morning to get to and document the hunt. We will bring you reports as soon as we have them. Tune in and help get the word out. Posted on April 04, 2007 at 06:13 AM
To document the hunt we typically search out the main herd of seals, which can number in the tens of thousands. When we find this main herd, we find the hunt. But this year, seals are simply nowhere to be found. Thin, broken ice and higher than usual mortality rates have had a profound effect on seal pups in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Ninety percent or more of the seals born in the southern Gulf this year have died, and the few surviving pups were targeted by sealers on Monday. Things look dismal in the northern Gulf as well, where this week the ProtectSeals team spotted only a dozen seal pups. Somewhere this hunt is happening - seal pups are being clubbed and shot to make fashion items. But we can't find seals or vessels, and fading daylight forced us to call off the search for the day. Tomorrow we will return. Posted on April 04, 2007 at 08:38 PM Sealers
Spotted Clubbing and Shooting Seals
Suddenly, from a distance, I saw the first sealing boats. They always remind me of black flies dotted across the icy landscape. In total, seven vessels spread around the edge of the ice pack. There are so few seal pups in this area, and yet sealers are clubbing and shooting to death every one they find. Below me on the ice, a pool of blood marked the death of another tragic victim of this awful slaughter.
Time ran out as our fuel ran low, and we had to return to our refueling site, where I am posting this report. But we will be back in the air just minutes from now, to document Canada's 2007 commercial seal hunt. Posted on April 05, 2007 at 09:23 AM
Posted on April 05, 2007 at 11:15 PM
More boats have come to hunt here today, and the bloody carcasses are filling the ice pans. The images that shame my country so much around the world are appearing over and over again on the sea ice off of our East Coast .
I cannot believe my government has again authorized this brutal slaughter of hundreds of thousands of pups. We have to refuel now, but will return soon to expose the tragic reality of this horrific annual slaughter.
Posted on April 05, 2007 at 02:38 PM Weather
Grounds Us, Hunt Goes On
We woke at 5:30 a.m., ready to depart for the ice floes. But our pilots called with bad news: a storm front is moving in to this area, and for the next few hours at least, our helicopters will be unable to fly. Just 45 miles off of Canada's East Coast, seal hunters are clubbing and shooting the seal pups with no witnesses. Here, the ProtectSeals team is tense, willing the weather to clear. Documenting this slaughter is a tremendous logistical undertaking - and our success depends on so many factors beyond our control. This year has been particularly difficult, with the Canadian government trying its level best to block observation and the hunt occurring in very remote areas. Right now, we all need some luck.
Yesterday's trip to the seal hunt was devastating. We saw so many sealers clubbing seals on the side of the face or the neck instead of their skulls. Others were shot but not killed, and they were left to suffer. So many animals were still struggling as they were hooked and dragged across the floes. Fisheries officials were stationed on a Coast Guard vessel in the area, but we did not see them monitor the hunting. Instead, they stopped us, and told us to move even farther away because our presence was "upsetting" the sealers. It has become clear over the years that my government has claimed our Canadian oceans for the sealing industry. Although my family still lives in this province, I do not have the same rights as a seal hunter when in Newfoundland waters. A hunter buys a $5 permit and is free to hunt for the season without interference. To observe the hunt, I must obtain a $25 observation permit, which must be renewed every day. I am subjected to a criminal background check, and the permit is issued at the whim of our Minister of Fisheries and Oceans - a Newfoundlander who is openly biased in favour of the seal hunt. Without witnesses, the seal hunters can continue to brutalize these pups without repercussion. The seals deserve our best efforts. So when the weather clears, we will return to the seal hunt area immediately. We are all standing by waiting for the next weather update. Posted on April 06, 2007 at 08:48 AM Brutality Below Us
We woke up at dawn, anticipating today's weather report from our pilots. But as soon as we saw that the sun was shining, we knew we could return to the hunt area. There are no words to adequately describe the brutality we witnessed today. We approached an area where seal pups still covered in white fur were scattered across broken ice pans. Sealing boats were moving fast towards them. The utter helplessness of our situation, hovering above in our helicopter as we watched, was unbearable. We could only film as the sealers bore down on the unsuspecting pups. The sealers didn’t even make a pretense of adhering to the Marine Mammal Regulations. They jumped onto the ice pans, running across the ice to club each seal just once before moving on. Without checking to ensure the seals were dead, they stabbed the still-struggling seal pups with boat hooks and dragged them onto the boats. There, the sealers cut open the pups and peeled their skins off, tossing the bloody carcasses into the sea.
It never gets any easier to witness this horror. Each year I hope the impact will lessen. But it doesn’t. How could anyone ever become desensitized to the beating to death of a 3-week-old helpless baby seal? I know the ProtectSeals team never will, and we will be here to bear witness as long as this hunt goes on. We all need to do more. I’m asking you to tell everyone you know about what is happening here on the ice floes – ask them to visit protectseals.org to find out how to join our efforts to shut this hunt down for good. Please help us ensure this is the last brutal hunt we will ever have to witness. Posted on April 07, 2007 at 03:47 PM Hunt
Continues Without Mercy Yesterday brought home to us all how horrible this hunt really is. So many of the pups being targeted were almost entirely covered with white fur, meaning they were just a couple of weeks old. Yet the hunters were shooting and clubbing them to death without mercy.
My blood runs cold as I watch these animals so new to this world die for nothing but fashion. The seal pups are so young, and it is crystal clear they do not want to die. The seals try desperately to crawl away as the hunters run toward them. But the pups are utterly helpless, and there is simply no escape from these men who are so much larger and faster. As the sealers raise their clubs, the pups turn and make a pathetic stand, rearing their small heads back and crying. But the clubs smash down each and every time. Yesterday, more often than not, those clubs struck the pups in their face or jaw, instead of their skulls, only intensifying the cruelty. Without missing a beat, the sealers stabbed the pups with metal hooks and dragged them, still struggling, across the ice floes. I try hard every year to understand the motivations of these hunters. I know they believe that because their parents and grandparents hunted seals, they have the right to follow suit. They do not see anything wrong with what they are doing, and they are determined to keep this industry alive, even though it contributes to just a fraction of their annual income. I grew up in this world, but I see it from another perspective. As I witness grown men beating to death defenseless baby seals, I do not see tradition and I do not see a historic industry. I see cowardice.
Cowardice that my government has the gall to proudly defend as an acceptable activity in this century. But when you strip away the Canadian government's carefully crafted PR lines, all you are left with is a grown man versus a baby seal, the violence of the kill, and the red-stained ice left behind. As I watch this brutality, I cannot help but wonder how those industry spin doctors personally justify their actions. Perhaps they have never bothered to find out what it is they are promoting. Tomorrow the boats from Newfoundland will arrive in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (map). When the weather permits, the ProtectSeals team will be there. Posted on April 08, 2007 at 07:13 PM Rules
Governing Hunt Are Ignored The high winds also forced sealers departing from the western coast of the Island of Newfoundland (map) to retreat back to their harbours. We take some consolation in knowing that the storm blocked these Newfoundland sealers from reaching the hunt for a day. But the boats are likely on their way to the ice floes this morning. Our team was understandably feeling quite low yesterday as the hunt continued without us there to observe. It is unbearable to think of what happened. We have seen the killing firsthand and know what these seals are going through. There are few people that can bear to watch what we do, and I am grateful for our team's strength.
We witness horrible acts of cruelty during this slaughter each year - forms of cruelty that clearly violate Canadian law. The Marine Mammal Regulations that govern the seal hunt require a hunter using a club to confirm that a seal is dead by performing one of two tests - a blink reflex or skull palpation - before he skins that seal or strikes another seal. But on Saturday, our team documented hunters rushing from seal to seal without performing either test, clubbing each animal just once before hurrying to the next, then hooking conscious seals and dragging them across the ice. This is not the first time our team has witnessed illegal activity at the seal hunt. Over the past few years, The HSUS and other animal protection groups have documented and submitted video evidence of more than 700 apparent violations of the Marine Mammal Regulations to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Each year our evidence grows, but not a single charge has been filed by the government in response. What we're witnessing is no humane or sustainable hunt. It is a massive and unnecessary slaughter; it is government-sanctioned cruelty. Posted on April 10, 2007 at 09:26 AM
Words almost fail me right now. What the ProtectSeals team witnessed at the seal hunt yesterday was more than we could bear. So many baby seals, just a few weeks of age and only beginning to moult their white coats, were shot and wounded and left to suffer in agony.
One seal tried desperately to crawl away, leaving a sickening trail of blood behind her on the ice (watch our video footage). For agonizing moments, we watched from our helicopter as she slowly dragged herself toward the water. Finally, the sealers reached the still-struggling pup. Without missing a beat, they impaled her on a steel hook, dragged her across the ice, and pulled her up onto their boat. A sealer threw her body onto a pile of about 50 dead and dying seals, then casually reached for a club and smashed her skull. Another seal pup that had been shot but not killed was hooked and dragged across the ice while still conscious. The pup was tossed callously onto a pile of dead seals in a boat. Moments later, we saw the seal pup moving amidst the carcasses.
One wounded seal struggled as she was stabbed with a boat hook. Seeing that she was still alive, the sealer stopped and clubbed her ineffectively with a wooden pole - an illegal weapon. Yet another seal was shot and injured but, as blood poured from him, managed to make it to the edge of the ice, where he disappeared into the water. Though a part of me cheered inside when he evaded the hunters, I know all too well that he will almost surely bleed to death slowly - just one of the countless thousands of wounded seals who endure this fate each year. There were almost no instances where the sealers obeyed the Marine Mammal Regulations, which require them to check to see if the seals are dead before hooking, dragging and skinning the animals. Nearly all of the seals we observed showed responses to pain as the sealers stabbed their steel hooks through the jaws, skulls and flippers of the pups, and dragged the animals across the ice. These were the Newfoundland seal hunters, who claim their methods of hunting are far more humane than those used by Magdalen Islanders (map). But this is a lie. While I have seen a lot of brutal killing throughout my nine years of monitoring this hunt, yesterday's images were among the worst I can remember. The sealers knew they were being filmed, but didn't even attempt to obey regulations. And, as usual, there were no government enforcement officers in sight.
We are all in shock right now, trying very hard to deal with the savagery we witnessed. After all, this is a hunt that my government has the gall to describe as "98 percent humane." It is said that you cannot wake a man who is only pretending to be asleep, and I can't think of a more fitting statement for the government representatives who continue to defend this slaughter. Every year that we film these gruesome images, we provide our footage to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. They see the same thing we do. Still, they choose to promote this brutality and then attempt to cover it up by blocking legal observation. The Canadian government is about to fail - and fail badly - in its mission to defend the indefensible. As angry and horrified as I am right now, I know that the scenes we witnessed and filmed today are irrefutable proof that Canada's commercial seal hunt is inherently inhumane. Today we will return to the scene of these crimes, to gather more evidence that will help shut down this brutality forever. Posted on April 11, 2007 at 10:41 AM Tactics of a Cruel Industry Yesterday was filled with horror and frustration. In the morning we flew over the ice floes and watched from our helicopter as more helpless baby seals were shot and clubbed and dragged onto sealing vessels with hooks while likely still alive. So many sealing vessels were moving through the ice, searching out the handful of remaining pups. But it quickly became apparent that almost no seals remain in this area (map). The ice floes are now empty, and the only signs of the pups that were once here are the blood trails left across the ice.
We would typically also see thousands of carcasses discarded on the ice floes. But this year, it seems the sealers cynically decided to do their best to hide the grim remains of this slaughter. The sealers have kept the dead seals onboard their boats, not throwing the carcasses into the ocean until our cameras are out of view. The site of hundreds of seals - some still moving - stockpiled on each sealing vessel's deck, awash in blood, is one of the most disturbing images I have seen. As we returned from this gruesome trip, we witnessed yet another of the sealers' tactics to hide their cruel behaviour. One of the key components of our helicopter expeditions is the ability to refuel at a remote location, close to the hunt. Because our flights to the ice are coming to a close, we spent yesterday afternoon trying to remove extra fuel barrels from the area. But our efforts were halted when an angry crowd of local seal hunters - knowing we use this fuel to get our helicopters to the hunt area - decided to stop us. About 20 carloads of people surrounded us. The group was clearly enraged. They shouted at us and banged on our truck, telling us to stop filming the hunt. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canada's national police force, surrounded our team but said that they could not remove the crowd. After several tense hours, the crowd suddenly left, and we were finally able to depart. But a half-mile down the road, several alarms began to sound in our vehicle, and we had to pull to the side of the road. Our radiator had been damaged with a sharp implement at the scene. We saw scrapes on the grill of the truck and holes punched in the radiator. Our truck would need to be towed to the nearest town.
As we left the area, we were all frustrated by the loss of the afternoon and the unethical tactics of the sealing industry. But we know in our hearts that nothing has been done to stop us: we have filmed the 2007 commercial seal hunt, and we have gathered clear evidence that this hunt is inherently inhumane. In the end, the sealing industry will lose. We have the truth on our side, and, armed with that truth, we move into the final phase of our campaign to shut down this slaughter forever. Posted on April 12, 2007 at 02:49 PM We Will Not Fail the Seals This morning the sun was shining in Newfoundland. As I looked out over the sparkling water, I found it impossible to reconcile the stunning beauty of this landscape with the ugliness of the hunt happening just beyond the horizon. Today, the seal hunt moves northeast of Newfoundland (map), out of range of our helicopters, to an area called the "Front." In less than 24 hours, we expect that thousands of seal hunters on hundreds of sealing vessels will kill well over 100,000 baby seals in this area.
I've seen this part of the seal hunt many times in the past. The scale and intensity of the slaughter are shocking - sealing boats stretch across the horizon as far as the eye can see, and the sealers work frantically to kill as many animals as quickly as possible. Within hours, the vast ice floes are covered in blood. Although the number of animals killed in the Front is greater, the killing looks exactly the same as the hunting by Newfoundlanders that we witnessed earlier this month in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence. The baby seals are shot or clubbed, then stabbed with metal hooks and dragged onto boats. The sealers rarely check to ensure the animals are dead before skinning them, and too often the seals are still conscious when this horrible act occurs.
Our work here on the ice floes is nearing an end for the year. We have gathered a tremendous body of evidence to show the inherent cruelty of this hunt. Now begins the challenge of convincing decision makers around the world to take action on behalf of the seals. Our goal is simple: to ensure this brutality is never allowed to happen again. And this is when we need you the most. For long after the 2007 seal hunt ends, The HSUS will be campaigning to stop this slaughter from repeating. It is you, our supporters, who are our best weapons in our fight to save the seals. Please remember to tell everyone you know about what the Canadian government is trying so desperately to hide. The fate of the seals rests in all of our hands. Together, we will not fail them. Posted on April 13, 2007 at 04:04 PM Poised to Win for the Seals
(Photo: HSUS) Our ProtectSeals team has moved out of Newfoundland (map) and our efforts to document the commercial seal hunt in 2007 have come to a close. This was my ninth year of observing the seal hunt and it was one of the most devastating. From our helicopters, we watched and filmed in horror. The cruelty we witnessed brought home exactly why this slaughter must be ended forever. The baby seals targeted for their fur were no match for the sealers who ran across the ice, armed with deadly weapons and greed. Wounded pups tried pathetically to escape, dragging their bleeding bodies toward the edges of the ice. But the sealers reached them, stabbed them with metal hooks, and dragged them back to their grim fate. Each year, I come away from this slaughter more determined than ever to shut this "industry" down for good. And this year, the ProtectSeals team leaves knowing that we will succeed in that monumental task. For as much as the Canadian government - my government - continues to lie to its own public, to foreign governments, and even to itself, there is simply no defense against what we have documented this year.
(Photo: HSUS) This is a battle of wills, and it is a battle we are poised to win. We have the truth and compassion on our side, and we are not alone. We are joined by governments the world over and international seafood distributors who are using their power to ensure this is the last baby seal slaughter any of us will ever have to witness. And most importantly, we have you. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a key part of our seal hunt expedition in 2007. It is never easy to bear witness to slaughter, but in doing so, you have helped us spread the word about the plight of the baby seals. Now comes the hardest part - our ongoing campaign to stop this brutality from repeating. We all need to do more. We must increase the number of people and companies boycotting Canadian seafood to step up the pressure on the Canadian government and fishing industry. And we must ensure that the European Union follows through on its intent to ban the trade in seal products. This will be my final journal entry, but please continue to stand with us. Together, we will ensure this slaughter is ended for good. Posted
on April 17, 2007 at 10:30 AM Rebecca Aldworth's journal, reprinted with kind permission from HSUS |
Sealing boat at full speed - approaching a new victim
Sealer ready to strike
Global warming - no solid ice
Aldworth in helicopter |
