Namibia to face a full onslaught of international boycotts

In a news article today, Bernard Esau, the Minister of Fisheries announced he plans to increase the quota for the slaughtering of seals.

Esau makes no reference to any scientific justification for the increase, neither does he propose how many jobs will be created. His proposal is a very transparent revenge attack for the pressure being heaped on Namibia over its atrocious seal massacre. Esau himself stands to gain financially from this increase as he and his wife both own shares in a business selling seal skin products. 

The Seals of Nam and our international partners have concurred that for every seal set over and beyond the current quota, we will send out 1 000 emails to various parties informing them of the slaughter and encouraging them to join the international boycott. These emails will include graphic footage and will direct people to write emails to their own governments urging sanctions, trade embargoes and restrictions to be imposed on Namibia. 

We maintain the seals are not responsible for a decline in Hake stocks. We are adamant that the decline is due to the Ministry of Fisheries lack of resource management and failure to curb illegal fishing in Namibian waters. The minister in question has done nothing to address the problem of employment when there are over 1000 fishing applications that are yet to be granted. Furthermore, the Namibian Government is guilty of awarding construction tenders to Chinese businesses as opposed to Namibian companies. It has been established that these Chinese construction companies also have business interests in the seal slaughter industry. 

We reiterate that viable and sustainable eco-tourism will create far more jobs and increased revenue for the people of Namibia. It will lead to large scale investment and will not adversely affect the fisheries at all.

TO VISIT THE SEALS OF NAM WEBSITE CLICK HERE 

TO FIND THE SEALS OF NAM ON FACEBOOK CLICK HERE

Shark Finning –

Rhino Wars.

I put this clip together for You-tube in the hope of increasing awareness to the plight of Rhino in Southern Africa.


Since 2007, there has been a 3000% increase in the amount of rhino illegally slaughtered in South Africa. Their horns are worth more than their weight in gold. This and habitat loss have made the rhino one of the most endangered animals on the planet. To ensure any future survival, the protection and conservation of these animals has reached a critical status. It has been scientifically proven that aphrodisiacs, traditional medicines and beauty treatments made from rhino horn have absolutely no effect what so ever. You may as well use your toe nail clippings.

"The Seals of Nam" – a true horror story

Ok. So Christmas has come and gone and we sit here patiently waiting for the new years celebrations to begin. As I reflect on the year behind me, I can honestly say 2010 was a most rewarding year. Sure it had it’s low points, but I chose at the beginning of the year to make a difference, not only in my life, but in the lives of others as well. I bungee jumped the worlds highest, I walked with cheetahs, I climbed a mountain, I joined Sea Shepherd, I helped organize anti whaling demonstrations and am now busy with THE SEALS OF NAM 

The Seals of Nam getting beaten to death in Namibia

“The Seals of Nam” is an initiative whereby I hope to bring ALL interested parties from around the world to join forces in condemnation of the cruel and barbaric practice of seal clubbing. 91 THOUSAND Cape Fur Seals are clubbed to death on the beaches of Namibia. 67 THOUSAND Harp Seals are clubbed to death on the ice floes of Canada. 21 March 2011 is International Human Rights Day. It is Namibian Independence Day. And… it is the day set aside for international protest action for the thousands of seals brutally clubbed to death each year. 


You, the reader of my humble blog, are also invited to take part and become active in trying to stop the gross and inhumane practice of seal clubbing. Don’t think that as an individual you can’t do anything. There is LOADS you can do to become involved. This evil thrives because good people are not taking any action.  


Here is a list of just a few things you can easily do. Not only will you be doing a favour for the seals of Namibia and Canada, but you will also feel good about yourself, knowing you have played a role in trying to prevent this annual slaughter. 


Spread the word. Inform media, radio stations, news papers etc.Tweet and blog the about “The Seals of Nam -a true horror story.” For more info on the horrors of the Namibian Seal Cull, click here 

Invite all you Facebook friends and e-mail contacts to this global event.http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=142174952503151

Start a protest in your city for the 21st March 2011. Its actually easier than you think. Here are some tips  Keep me informed on progress, so I can open communication channels between groups from the same place. This will make the campaign so much more effective.

You can sign online petitions and send mail to celebrities asking them to actively support and promote our initiative. Pamela Anderson, Paul McCartney and Charlize Theron are known to actively protest against the fur industry. Charlize in particular. She comes from South Africa and Namibia is its neighbour. Charlize supports the rhino cause as well as many others. Here is one contact address for her

Charlize Theron:
Postal address: c/o United Talent Agency
9560 Wilshire Blvd.
Suite 500
Beverly Hills
CA 90212
USA

Oprah is looking for people to interview for her final season. Suggest Francois Hugo from Seal Alert SA who has been at the forefront of this fight for years. Ellen Degeneres is also big into animal welfare. The more people who request it, the greater our chances at getting the exposure we so desperately need.

Contact all the big name movements (and the little ones too), Sea Shepherd, Greenpeace, PETA, Bridget Bardot, WWF, Coalition to Abolish Fur Trade, WSPA, Animal Liberation Front, Vegan Society etc. Inform them that there is not a single animal charity to have an active campaign to protect “The Seals of Nam” Invite them to join this global initiative, where interested parties put aside their differences and work towards the common good. We shall, despite our differences, unite as one in condemnation of these atrocities. March 21 2011 is not only Human Rights Day and Namibian Independence day but ESPECIALLY the day for Cape Fur Seals, “The Seals of Nam” Provide these organizations with a link to this facebook events page.http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=142174952503151

As the groups join, they are to please indicate the Name of the Org on the wall, the name of the contact person, city or region and provide a link to their website. I will update the page accordingly and they will be credited as being “on board” If I miss one in error, they can please remind me by contacting me directly so I can fix.

Hatem Yavuz is the sole buyer of Cape Fur Seal pelts. He drives this murderous cull. You can mail him your thoughts. Tell him his time as “King of the Cull” is up. Here are contact details for his business
Hatem Yavuz Deri
43A Ethel Street
Seaforth
Sydney
Australia
…tel: (61-2) 9948 5366
e-mail hatemyavuz@superonline.com
If you do get a response, please post it on the event page.

You can also send mails to the Namibian Government. Here is a list  of all their embassies, high commissions and consulates. Tell them you will boycott not only their tourism, but also all Namibian produce and you will actively discourage people from visiting their country if they do not end the cull. You can inform travel agents and ask them not to promote Namibia as a destination.Provide an alternative solution to the cull, such as large scale eco-tourism, which will not only generate increased wealth, but will also lead to the creation of many jobs in a country desperate for employment.

The SPCA in Namibia have both the legislative power and mandate to end this cull. Not only are they not living up to their name, The Society for PREVENTION of CRUELTY to animals, but they have CONDONED this madness, publicly stating that the violent clubbing of 91 000 seals to death is HUMANE!! I kid you not. Here is a news article
The Animal Protection Act of 1962 (Namibia) applies to all animals, it governs both domestic animals as well as wildlife. The act clearly states that beating an animal to death is an act of cruelty. This link will take you to the contact page of their website. Please feel free to send them as much hate mail as you wish.

Francois Hugo of Seal Alert SA with one of his beloved seals

At the time of writing this post, I am pleased to announce that Seal Alert SA and Oceanic Defence have confirmed full support. I have Pete Bethune from Earthrace signing off on funding and getting final confirmation and Sea Shepherd have also expressed interest. 


Thanks so much. Have a safe holiday and an amazing and productive 2011. 

The Clash of Titans

These dramatic pictures show a clash of the titans as a protective mother elephant and a ferocious crocodile get into an epic tug of war in Zambia. The female elephant and her calf were drinking from the Luangwa River in the South Luangwa National Park when they were attacked.

The Crocodile launches its surprise attack as mother elephant and calf enjoy a drink

Baby elephant hides behind its mother

Mother elephant is brought to her knees as the croc thrashes around

Mother elephant manages to turn away from the river, despite the crocs attempts to pull her in

With baby safe away from the water, mother elephant begins to flee, with crocodile still clamping down on her trunk

The mighty elephant drags the croc from the water

Despite the unwanted appendage, both mother and calf break out into a run

Freedom. Water gushes from her trunk as baby momentarily stumbles over the predator. Despite their ordeal, mother and calf were spotted later that day drinking further downstream

Bag a Bob-Cat

The 26 November was World Wide Fur Free Day. Fur Free South Africa, in conjunction with the Global Fur Free Initiative, held demonstrations in Johannesburg. It was attended by a fair number of people.

While putting together a portfolio of cruelty, which I will use in educating others about the fur industry, I came across this clip on You-tube. Watch this and then tell me if YOU think this is acceptable.

Trapping is responsible for the death of over 10 MILLION animals each year. Personally I feel trapper mentality belongs in an era of loin cloths. Not the 21st century. You don’t need to be a member of PETA to realise this is a cruel practice.

Barbaric. Utterly Disgusting.

I have been criticized as being a bit “over the top” with regards to my love and passion for wildlife, nature and the creatures I share the planet with. I have resigned from my crappy poor paying job in the corporate world. It may be good for some people, but sitting behind a counter, shuffling paper back and forth and dealing with a chain of incompetent useless idiots… well it brought me not one iota of happiness. It was Ghandi, I think, who said “Our future depends on what we do in the present.” And this IS the present. So what AM I doing? I am raising awareness, sharing ideas and fighting rampant cruelty as best as I can. I have joined up with Sea Shepherd. Some of you groaning “those lunatics!” Yes. Sea Shepherd. Lunatics? Watch this clip and decide for yourself before you condemn the folks who actually have the balls to do something about protecting the marine environment.

My attempts may be in vain, after all saving the life of one animal will not change the world, but it will change the world for that one animal. At the end of the day, when all is said and done… will you have said more than you have done? Thanks Gina for these wise words. For one so young and yet so aware, you are an inspiration. You are already the voice that animals do not have.

Save the Rhino!

Poaching of African rhinos has risen 2,000 percent in the past three years & Rhino horns fetch up to $30,000 per pound.

The poaching of rhinos for their horns has risen dramatically over the last year and a half, conservationists report.

These crimes are fueled by demand for African rhino horn from the Asian market, where it can fetch more than $30,000 a pound ($60,000 per kilogram).

Africa is losing a rhinoceros every other day. South Africa, which holds more than 80 percent of the continent’s rhino population, has been losing at least 20 rhinos per month.

“Within South Africa’s national parks — not counting private land there, where poaching was rare — there were 10 rhinos poached in 2007,” said Matthew Lewis, senior program officer for African species conservation for the World Wildlife Fund. “Thus far in 2010 alone, more than 200 rhinos were poached within South Africa, with a lot of those poached outside national parks, so that’s a more than 2,000 percent increase in just three years’ time.”

The horns might weigh 6.3 to 8.1 pounds (2.9 to 3.7 kilograms) on average. Bits of crushed horn are a prized ingredient in traditional Asian medicines.

The crisis in Africa

Two species of rhino are native to Africa, while three are native to southern Asia. Of the two African species, the white rhinoceros is near-threatened, and the black rhinoceros is critically endangered. Some 4,000 black rhinos and 17,500 white rhinos are all that keep Africa’s rhinoceros population from extinction.

Hundreds of thousands of rhinos once roamed throughout Africa. Now highly organized international groups of illegal hunters are using helicopters and deploying technologies including night-vision scopes, silenced weapons and drugged darts to find and kill these giants.

“We’re up against the emergence of really high-tech poachers,” Lewis said. “This tactic of using helicopters and veterinary drugs on darts has really only come out in the last six months to a year. It really points to organized crime.”

Greed and nonsense

Most rhino horns leaving southern Africa are destined for markets in Asia, especially Vietnam, where demand has escalated in recent years.

“A lot of that has to do with how Vietnam’s economy has grown astronomically,” Lewis said. The country’s newly affluent middle and upper class seems to be seeking rhino horn as some kind of miraculous remedy, he said, although its traditional use in Chinese medicine is for fevers and nosebleed.

Rhino horn is made from keratin, “from compacted hair, a very similar substance to the hooves of a horse or a cow, or a person’s own fingernails,” Lewis said. “Taking rhino horn has the same effects as chewing on your fingernails: no medicinal properties whatsoever.”

With prices that high, there’s also the prospect “of creating anything and calling it rhino horn,” Lewis said. “People can throw in all kinds of crazy things, and it could actually be very dangerous.”

Trouble in Asia

Asian rhinos, which generally have smaller horns, seem to be less of a target for poachers. Still, two of the three Asian rhino species, the Javan and Sumatran rhinoceroses, are critically endangered at populations of 40 and 400, respectively, Lewis said, and only 2,400 or so Indian rhinoceroses remain in the wild.

“They were nearly wiped out 100 years ago, and they’re hanging on by a thread,” Lewis said. “Indian rhinos have much larger horns than the other two Asian species, and we’ve seen escalation to their poaching similar to Africa in the past three or four years.”

“We have to raise awareness and get on top of this,” Lewis concluded. “Rhinos could go extinct in our lifetime as a result of this if awareness isn’t raised.” He hopes increasing public awareness about the plight of rhinos could spur a crackdown on the criminals who buy and kill for these horns.

Facts on Fur

The fur trade. Just the very mention and the mind starts spinning. Of course it is an emotional issue, but before you think I am some kind of weird hippie or am here to promote my moral superiority, please bear in mind that I have actually done considerable research into the subject.

As with any argument, it is of utmost importance that one is first presented with the facts. Here they are. Undisputed.

Each year around 50 MILLION animals are slaughtered for their fur. Animals include, but are not limited to foxes, rabbits, cats, dogs, wolves, bears, hamsters, raccoons, mink, moles, chinchillas, lynx, beavers, skunks, seals, coyotes, leopards, tigers, otters and squirrels.

Around 85% of these 50 million animals are raised in various fur farms around the world. The living conditions of these caged animals invariably involves unhygienic, cramped and squalid living accommodations, with insufficient space for maneuverability and a lack of water. Cages, made out of wire mesh, are usually stacked on top of one another in long rows under an open shed. Sometimes, while being moved around, animals inside these cages have their legs broken. Small farms usually have around a hundred animals, while some of the larger fur farms, such as those in Scandinavia, can have up to a hundred thousand.

Animals subjected to these conditions frequently develop physical and behavioural problems induced by the stress of their caging. Aside from frantic and ceaseless pacing, reports of self-mutilation where the animals bite their skin, tails and feet are not uncommon. Malnutrition and overcrowding also result in increased disease susceptibility and more parasites. Because of these un-natural conditions one finds an unusually high rate of cub mortality, as much as 25% in foxes. Infanticide, where the mother eats her own young, is also a regular occurrence. Mink, which rely heavily on water, are often found dead from heat exhaustion, especially in summer where they cannot find water to cool themselves. Water is usually via a nipple system which freezes in winter.

Number of Animals to Make a Fur Coat:
12-15 lynx
10-15 wolves or coyotes
15-20 foxes
20-25 cats
60-80 minks
27-30 raccoons
10-12 beavers
60-100 squirrels

In order to preserve the pelt, and thus maximize profits, fur farmers employ some fairly gruesome methods in order to kill the animals. Some of these are listed as follows. Anal electrocution, where the shock causes the animals eyeballs to burst and it contorts so violently the spasms break its back. Some animals, struggling in pain and terror have their necks twisted and broken. Others, particularly seal pups, are bludgeoned to death. Their heads beaten so hard the skulls collapse. Some fury creatures are injected with strychnine which causes spasms in the muscles, starting with the head and neck. The spasms spread to every muscle causing continuous convulsions until death, in the form of asphyxiation caused by paralysis, comes some 15-25 minutes later. Cats are usually strangled with wire nooses and have water poured down their throats until they drown. Many creatures are simply gassed with exhaust fumes. This unreliable method often leads to the animal waking up to find itself being skinned alive.

As for the environment, it has been found that the amount of energy required to make a genuine fur coat is approximately 20 times that of a fake fur garment. Chemicals used to stop the fur from rotting also render it not bio-degradable and the very use of these chemicals can also lead to water contamination.

Unlike the meat industry, where the meat is used as a source of food, the fur industry serves no purpose other than to pander to the whims of vanity. Some 80 000 Cape Fur Seals and a further 350 000 Harp Seals are slaughtered each year in Namibia and New Foundland respectively. If you were to line these animals up side by side, you would have a line of almost 300 Kilometers long. However, less than 2% meat is used and carcasses are left to rot on the ice floes.