We all know about the Canadian Seal Cull. Disgusting, barbaric. But how many are aware of the Namibian seal cull? Do you know that the Namibian cull is the largest slaughter of its kind on the planet? It is considered to be the most brutal of all culls and is now officially responsible for the death of more seals than the Canadian cull.
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| terrified seals run for their lives |
On the first of July, 85 000 suckling seal pups and a further 6 000 bulls will be killed in the annual cull. For the next 139 days, terrified pups will be rounded up, seperated from their mothers and be violently beaten to death. The colony will be rounded up at daybreak. Pups, bulls and mothers will surrounded and kept away from the safety of the sea. Men with clubs move in and the seals run in fear.
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| The babies vomit their milk up in fear |
The sealers will cut the little ones throats, sometimes while they are still alive. The baby seals are known to be so terrified that they vomit up their mothers milk. The sand on the beach is stained pink from all the blood. Carcasses are thrown onto the back of waiting vehicles and the bull-dozers come in to clean up the beach before the tourists arrive to view the colony.
There is not ONE animal charity that has an active campaign against this mindless slaughter. Not ONE! And each year, despite a declining population, the quota gets increased. But before I get into the quota, I want you to consider the following.
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| The cruelest of all culls |
The Cape Fur Seal is listed on Appendix 2 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. (CITES) This means that they are not yet threatened with extinction, but their survival is dependent on conservation. They have a natural mortality rate of around 30% within the first few weeks of being born. In Canada, sealing only begins after the pup is fully weaned and is self surviving. The Cape Fur Seal however, takes much longer to wean, up to 11 months. Clubbing begins when they are seven months old. Yes, still baby babies.
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| Bull-dozers clean up the beach |
Loss of habitat, the fishing industry and starvation are major threats to these animals. Between 1994 and 2000 some 300 thousand seals died from starvation. In 1993 the pup production was 164 248 with a sealing TAC quota of 50 850 – (31% of pups) In 2000 the pup production was 147 823 (90% of 1993) with a sealing TAC quota of 60 000 – (41% of pups). In 2006 the pup production was 107 910 (73% of 2000) with a sealing TAC quota of 85 000 – (79% of pups) What justification is there for the Namibian government to increase the quota from 31% to 79% considering the two mass die offs in between where between a third to a half of the population died of starvation? This amounts to a seal genocide!
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| Hatem Yavuz |
The ministry of fisheries claims it has on several occasions asked the public for a more humane method of culling. To date, no one has come up with a solution. The cull is driven by ONE man. Hatem Yavuz. He has the contract to buy every skin from the Namibian cull until 2019. He pays $7 per pelt while foreign tourists pay $12 to view the colony (after the bull-dozers have cleaned up the beach that is) His solution to the method of culling is, and I quote “In order for them to feel less pain, they need to be killed with a club that has a nail in it.” Yavuz, who describes himself as an animal lover, is arrogant in the extreme. He wears a necklace made from the teeth of a white whale he killed. Dubbed “The King of the Cull” Yavuz jokes in an interview with Australia’s Seven News that he wears his crown with pride. He laughs at the interviewer and makes silly and snide comments the whole way through. Yavuz and his partner run their business “Hatem Yavuz Deri” from Sydney and apparently also have offices in Turkey, Russia and South Africa. Here is his e-mail address hatemyavuz@superonline.com Feel free to raise your concerns.
But enough of that particular moron. I now wish to draw your attention to the hero of this story and not the villain. The Patron Saint of Cape Fur Seals is a South African who has fought tirelessly against this Namibian cull. Francois Hugo. In 1999, Hugo established “Seal Alert-SA” as a “direct hands on organisation to address the imbalances, cruelty and abuse that has plagued this species for 600 years.” Paul Watson, co-founder of “Greenpeace” and founder of “Sea Shepherd Conservation Society” has this to say
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| Francois Hugo |
” One of the rarest things among people are those who have forged a bond with another species. It is such people that I admire and respect most for they have shaken loose the bonds of anthropcentrism and they have pierced that mysterious but familiar veil that separates us from the other wondrous species that share this incredible planet with us. Francois Hugo is one such person whose profound love for the Cape fur seals manifests itself in a raging passion that fuels both his anger at the injustice done to the seals and his compassion to do all that he can to defend and protect the seals. Francois is a devoted shepherd to these marvolous creatures and he needs the assistance of every person who can muster up the compassion to support him. Here is a man who is not asking for anything but for people to join his plea to the government of South Africa to help protect and save his beloved seals.”
Francois, for all you have done and all you continue to do, I salute you. Though I cannot do much, I will do my damndest to raise awareness to the plight of these animals and let the world know about the atrocities being perpetrated against them. Thank you.
