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Seal hunt supporters confront animal rights protesters

A sealing ship makes its way through the ice floes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence Saturday March 25, 2006. The annual harp seal hunt started yesterday. 325,000 harp seals will be harvested.
Photograph by : Canadian Press
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: * * * * Canadian Press
Published: Thursday, April 13, 2006
BLANC-SABLON, Que. (CP) -- Supporters of Atlantic Canada's annual seal hunt made life miserable, and potentially dangerous, for animal rights activists who insisted Thursday they were only trying to document the start of the slaughter off the coast of southern Labrador.

About 80 residents in the eastern Quebec town of Blanc-Sablon, near the Labrador border, surrounded a small hotel when they learned that foreign journalists and members of the Humane Society of the United States were staying there.

Late in the day officers with the Quebec provincial police escorted the 15 activists, reporters and photographers from the hotel and drove them in police vans to a nearby airport. They arrived safely.

Rebecca Aldworth, a society spokeswoman staying at the hotel, said a charter airplane was hired to fly the group to an undisclosed location.

"This is going to be the longest drive of my life,'' Aldworth said as she prepared to leave the hotel. "The people outside look very aggressive.''

Aldworth said the Humane Society, which describes itself as the largest animal protection organization in the United States, will continue to document the hunt off Labrador, which started Wednesday.

Sealers from Newfoundland and Labrador are permitted to slaughter a total of 230,000 seals in this year's hunt on the Front -- a vast and unforgiving area north of Newfoundland. Another 91,000 seals already have been killed in the Gulf of St. Lawrence hunt, which finished last week.

Federal Fisheries Department officials estimate up to 270 large boats were involved in the hunt, most of them working the floes off Cartwright in Labrador. Another 350 small boats are working further south.

Earlier in the day, local residents tried to block a van carrying journalists to the Blanc-Sablon airport where they were scheduled to board a helicopter to photograph the hunt.

Aldworth said someone used a large truck to ram the van, forcing it off the road.

"Thankfully, no one was hurt,'' she said. "They were able to get the van back on the road and returned to the hotel.''

Seal hunter Marius Lavalee confirmed there was an ugly confrontation.

"We wanted to try and stop them,'' he said. "Then it got violent. They tried to run one guy over.''

Lavalee said a man then jumped on the hood of the van.

"They wouldn't stop with him. They took him about a kilometre or so. He got off after a while.''

Isabelle Lafontaine, spokeswoman for the Quebec provincial police in Baie Comeau, Que., said the force is investigating the collision between the two vehicles.

Yvonne Jones, the member of the provincial legislature for the Labrador district of Cartwright-L'Anse au Clair, disputed claims that the animal-rights activists were in danger.

"I've been there the whole morning and I have not seen one thing that would be considered to be violent or threatening in any way,'' Jones told the St. John's Telegram from Blanc-Sablon. "This is a very peaceful protest.''

Jones said that at one point, about 100 fishermen had surrounded the hotel. She said they intended to continue the blockade until the hunt ends.

Officials with the Humane Society, based in Baltimore, said they contacted the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa to complain about the situation.

"Canada should be ashamed,'' said John Grandy, senior vice-president with the Humane Society. "Our team is there as peaceful observers and they should not have to fear for their safety.''

Larry Yetman, a Fisheries Department spokesman in Newfoundland and Labrador, said the hunt was extended through Thursday and officials will review the catch numbers to see if it should be extended further.

Yetman said sealers are having trouble finding large quantities of younger seals.

"One view is that we may have been a couple of days too late in opening the hunt on the Front and the seals now are spending more time in the water, making them more difficult to locate,'' he said.

Aldworth said it was the second day her group has faced angry crowds.

On Wednesday, a group of Labradorians surrounded a helicopter leased by the animal rights group and prevented it from leaving.

"They sat on the floats of our helicopter,'' Aldworth said. "We couldn't leave because if we started up the helicopter, the blades could have hurt somebody.''

Police moved in and persuaded 50 local residents to let the aircraft leave.



© 2006

Fisheries officials reviewing seal hunt rules

By CHRIS MORRIS

Audit looks at Fisheries Dept. travel expenses




(CP) - Canadian Fisheries officials are reviewing rules governing the annual East Coast seal hunt after one of the most turbulent seasons in decades.

Clashes between sealers and hunt protesters in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador highlighted growing tensions between the people who want to stop the slaughter of young seals and those who rely on it as a much-needed source of income.

High-profile appeals by celebrities, including a widely covered visit to the Gulf by ex-Beatle Paul McCartney and the re-emergence of actress Brigitte Bardot, signalled a massive new effort by animal rights groups to stop the seal hunt once and for all.

Out on the ice, the presence of protesters was beyond toleration for some sealers who resorted to flinging seal guts at observers and, in several cases, attempting to ram the small, inflatable vessels used by protesters and news reporters.

With the threat of boycotts growing and with more countries considering bans on seal products, officials with the Canadian Fisheries Department are reviewing their options to protect the hunt.

At the very least, they say there could be new restrictions placed on hunt observers.

"Sealers are very concerned that these people (the protesters) are there and that they can approach within such a close distance," says Fisheries spokesman Larry Yetman, referring to rules that allow observers to come as close as 10 metres to hunters.

"They feel it's disruptive to the hunt. . . . We'll have to develop plans around the protest situation and see where we go with it next year."

One thing is clear: neither the Canadian government nor sealers are about to back down, despite the renewed campaign by animal rights activists.

Mark Small, chairman of Newfoundland's Northeast Sealers Co-operative and a veteran sealer, says hunters and processors are enjoying record prices for seal skins this year - up to $105 per pelt.

Small says that rate of return means a sealer who brings in 1,000 skins - the average for most hunters - will end up with over $100,000 in his pocket.

Small says that helps cover the soaring expenses facing Atlantic fishermen today, from skyrocketing insurance premiums on boats to the high cost of fuel.

As well, growing problems in other fisheries - including quota reductions in crab and vanishing stocks in the groundfishery - make the seal hunt increasingly important.

"It is the brightest spot that we got in the fishing industry," Small says.

"It's not a sport fishery. This is based on economics and it has become very important in light of what has happened to the groundfishery worldwide."

Rebecca Aldworth, spokeswoman for the Humane Society of the United States - a large animal protection organization opposed to the seal hunt - says hunt protesters aren't about to back down either.

Armed with seemingly limitless amounts of cash, animal protection groups are switching their focus from the ice to two new fronts: international markets and the courts.

"We're trying to shut down the markets," Aldworth says, noting success with seal product bans in several European countries.

"As long as there is a market for this product, sealers have a financial incentive to kill seal pups."

Aldworth says animal rights activists are turning their attention to emerging seal markets in Russia and China.

She says they will take their videos of blood-soaked ice and helpless young seals to Russia and China to spread the message that the largest marine mammal slaughter in the world is a cruel affront to nature.

Aldworth says hunt opponents also will wage legal battles against efforts by the Canadian government to shut down their work documenting the hunt.

Aldworth is one of seven people who were arrested on the ice and are now under investigation for violating terms of observer permits during the Gulf hunt last month.

No charges have been laid yet, but Roger Simon of the federal Fisheries Department says evidence is being reviewed and a decision will be made in the coming weeks.

Aldworth says the Humane Society is preparing to go to Federal Court in Ottawa to seek a judicial review of the decision to suspend her observer permit and those of the others arrested in the Gulf.

"We take our presence at the hunt very seriously," says Aldworth, a native of Newfoundland.

"If the hunt goes ahead next year, we will be there documenting it and the federal government will have to permit observers from the Humane Society of the United States. We will fight them in court and we will win our right to legally document this hunt."

Aldworth says the arrests, the hostile encounters with sealers and angry protests by people living in coastal towns proved to protesters they are being taken seriously as a threat to the hunt.

"For us, it was proof that our campaign is succeeding," she says.

This year's hunt is not quite finished.

A small boat hunt is still underway off Newfoundland and Labrador, where bad weather has kept sealers from catching their quota.

In total, it appears this year's quota of 325,000 seals will not be reached.

While hunters in the Gulf of St. Lawrence finished significantly above their quota, the hunt off Newfoundland and Labrador likely will come in under the total allowable catch.


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( i want to thank all who helped in raising awareness of the plight of the baby seals worldwide)

Seal of approval


Another Viewpoint
The Express

The majority of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians thought this seal hunt debate would pass by rather quickly much like it has in past years. A little hiccup prior to the season commencing and then on to business as usual.

Perhaps that was a little overzealous of us since now many are saying forget the seals; club us over the noggin.

Even though the hunt is all but over for another year, this most asinine debate continues to be dragged out on an international stage and the verbal slander from bleeding heart animal rights groups and celebs in search of a cause has started to cast a negative light on our province.

Just last week Friends of Animals, an American animal rights advocacy group based in Connecticut, issued a press release asking potential tourists to boycott traveling to Canada this year unless the federal government stops the hunt.

The group contends Ottawa spent $20 million between 1995 and 2001 in supporting hunt by covering the costs of maintaining plants; ice breaking support; and research and marketing for seal products. What they fail to realize is that the government has ceased providing subsidies because sealing is an economically viable industry, which in 2005 thanks to favourable market conditions yielded $16.5 million without subsidization from Parliament Hill.

In the press release, president Priscilla Feral suggests that there are other avenues of eco-tourism that can be just as profitable to address the “province’s 15 per cent jobless rate” and that it was “proven when the whale killing communities adjusted their economy.”

Two key points here need to be addressed. Our province’s unemployment rate is closer to 20 per cent and the industry is a crucial source of income for many Newfoundland families in coastal communities as they await other fishing income. In some cases, it can represent up to 35 per cent of a fisherman’s total annual income.

The second point which needs to be raised is that seals, unlike most whales, are not an endangered species. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans estimates that the Northwest Atlantic harp seal population at nearly 5.8 million. Plus, harp seals are the rabbits of the sea having tripled their numbers since the 1970s. Harvesting 325,000 seals, a quota set out by the DFO to ensure the population does not suffer great losses, is not going to hurt their numbers.

For Friends of Animals to suggest that we give up the hunt, turn our sealing vessels into pleasure boats and use them to parade the scattered tourist to the Front to take pictures of white furry doe-eyed seals then they may as well change their moniker to Enemy of Struggling Newfoundlander.

Ottawa and, more specifically, this province’s government have invested significant capital in marketing our tourism value on an international stage, so for groups and individuals to use the same stage to make unilateral attacks based on their own beliefs serves only to undermine what we are trying to accomplish.

Let’s hope government and the sealing industry has a plan in place before the hunt and its propaganda begin next year because, while the seals are harvested in the most humane way possible, the attack on sealers and our province on the whole is just the opposite.

Hate mail

Anti-seal hunt activists target Labrador MHA

AMY JO PATEY
The Labradorian

Cartwright-L’anse au Clair MHA Yvonne Jones has expressed her “disgust” and dismay after being targeted by the anti-seal hunt movement in a series of emails.

Last week Ms Jones told The Labradorian she had received dozens of emails from anti-seal hunt activists and supporters calling her and her constituents “murderers” and “barbarians.”

“These emails were disgusting. They were just full of hate in their jargon saying I represent stupid people, murderers, killers and barbarians,” she said.

“They know my father, brothers and husband are sealers and they targeted me as a politician. The emails are full of slings and most of them are very hateful.

“The hunt is making the animal rights activists millions while we’re struggling to earn a living and survive.

“I really feel that they are unjust, confrontational and hateful. They aren’t open to listen to anyone else’s opinion and they do whatever it takes to raise their millions.”

Ms Jones was in Blanc Sablon, Quebec during a recent pro-hunt protest where animal rights activists claimed locals threatened them with physical violence and forced them to leave Canada.

According to the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), nearly 60 people surrounded the Four Seasons Inn in Blanc Sablon and refused to let members of their organization and their companions leave. They also claimed a vehicle containing members of their party was forced off the road on the way to their waiting helicopters.

“We are appalled by these violent tactics used by the local citizens in an attempt to prevent our team from documenting the cruelty of the seal hunt,” HSUS Senior Vice President Doctor John Grandy said in a statement.

“We cannot understand why the Canadian government is allowing these people to break the law and endanger lives. But revoking our team members’ permits and infringing on their rights…this is a terrible injustice and Canada should be ashamed.”

However, Ms Jones believes the HSUS and other animal rights groups are blowing a civil and peaceful protest out of proportion and exploiting it for their own agenda.

“I don’t think anyone broke the law. It was a very civil protest when I was there,” she said.

“The RCMP in the parking lot were not concerned. I think if it was as violent as alleged, the RCMP would have moved in early on. Most of what the animal rights groups are saying has been overexposed and done so without a balanced picture of the incident.”

Ms Jones said when she arrived at the protest, 15 animal rights activists were at the local hotel.

“Most were on the patio watching the protest but they weren’t pleased they weren’t able to leave,” she said.

“They did not receive a very warm welcome. In every airport they landed in and in every hotel they stayed in there were protests. We had to let these people know this would not be tolerated.”

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society also targeted the protest in a series of press releases stating the pro-hunt demonstrators were an “extremely dangerous” mob and that the RCMP presence was negligent.

“The police in Blanc Sablon are being irresponsible in not controlling the mob of hunt supporters and appear to be complicit with their behavior,” said the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society in a statement.

“A truck driven by a seal hunt supporter deliberately rammed a van carrying seal defenders and reporters. Tensions [were] rising and seal hunt supporters [were] threatening the lives of those in the hotel.”

Ms Jones dismissed the accusations and instead targeted the anti-sealing contingent for allegedly driving a van into a group of seal hunt supporters.

“One of the animal rights activists tried to plow through a group of people to get to the airport,” she said.

“I think [the situation] has been strongly exaggerated. If it was an incident as the animal rights activists claim, I feel the RCMP would have intervened.”

RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli defended the police response to the protest during a visit to Labrador last week.

“It’s very easy for someone to look at a situation from their perspective — sometimes, with all due respect, their narrow perspective and pass judgment on these things,” he said.

“We try to do the best we can. We have a philosophy and principals we abide by to provide quality police service. We believe in our policing being underpinned by Canadian values. We have a philosophy of trying to resolve everything in a peaceful way. We consider everybody’s point of view but at the end of the day we have to take a certain action.

“Sometimes people don’t agree with our actions but we always try to balance everybody’s interests.”

Ms Jones also believes it is time for the Canadian government to step in.

“I think it’s time for the federal government to stop giving permits to go to the ice,” she said.

“I don’t have a sealing license. I’m not allowed to go on a boat. So why does the federal government continue to give out observer permits to the activists and their journalist friends to go out and exploit this industry? It has to stop.”

Without federal interception, Ms Jones said, the clashes could escalate.

“It is going to get a lot worse. My district members depend on this hunt more and more. The more money it provides, the bigger part of their livelihood depends on it. The more they depend on it, the harder they’re going to fight,” she said.

“Someone is going to get hurt. I don’t want to see that happen. But this isn’t recreation. This isn’t a sport. It fills a great need and people depend on it to earn a living. That’s what it comes down to today.”

Apologize or get sued, activists tell Hearn
Last updated May 5 2006 06:13 AM NDT
CBC News
A prominent animal welfare organization is threatening to sue federal Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn for libel over comments he made about their involvement with the East Coast seal hunt.

The Humane Society of the United States – which emerged this year as one of the sharpest critics of the hunt – says it will sue Hearn if he does not issue an apology over remarks he made on March 31 about some of its members.


Loyola Hearn has been told to read a prepared apology or face a lawsuit from animal welfare activists. (CBC)

The remarks followed the arrest of seven people who were protesting the hunt earlier that week off the Magdalen Islands.

FROM JAN. 27, 2006: Protesters arrested as tempers flare in seal hunt
Lawyers for the animal welfare group sent a prepared statement of apology to Hearn's office on Thursday. They also sent a notice of libel in case he declines to read the statement.

READ MORE: HSUS libel notice (23kb .pdf)
The minister is reviewing the document before he comments on it, his communications director, Steve Outhouse, said Thursday.

"We just got the statement from them this morning – probably about the same time they were sending it out to the media," Outhouse said.

FROM CBC ARCHIVES: Pelts, Pups and Protest: The Atlantic Seal Hunt
"If you step over that line and try to interfere in any way with the hunt, then you can be arrested and charged, as people were last week," Hearn told reporters March 31, in a comment the HSUS said was libellous.

On March 31, Hearn cautioned reporters that while he would continue to issue observer permits at the seal hunt, he would place restrictions on them.

Referring to the seven who'd been involved in a skirmish earlier, he added, "These people will not be going back to the hunt. If, upfront, you say, 'I'm going to the hunt, but I'm going out there to interfere,' we will not grant you a permit."

Rebecca Aldworth, the society's Montreal-based director of Canadian issues, said none of the HSUS members were charged, and not all participants were arrested.

"I, for example, was not arrested," Aldworth said.

"He said that we all had been charged with an offence, and none of us to this day [has] been charged with any offence. "

The animal welfare group says Hearn's comments were false and defamatory. The libel claim reads, "The words complained of were calculated to injure the reputation of the intended plaintiffs by exposing them to hatred, contempt and/or ridicule."

The claim's plaintiffs are Aldworth, Andrew Plumbly and Mark Glover.

Aldworth accompanied a society delegation to the hunt off Newfoundland and Labrador in April, although she was not able to obtain a permit to observe the hunt directly. She said her constitutional rights had been violated.

FROM APRIL 13, 2006: Fishermen keep anti-sealing activists grounded
Residents of the Labrador community of Cartwright and the Quebec town of Blanc Sablon were able to keep HSUS members and other activists from observing much of the hunt.

DFO: Minister Hearn Issues Statement
CCNMatthews
Mon 15 May 2006
Dateline: OTTAWA, ONTARIO
Time: 13:00 PM

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(CCNMatthews - May 15, 2006) - The Honourable Loyola Hearn,
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, issued the following statement today:

On March 31, 2006, I made a statement suggesting that individuals had been
arrested and charged in relation to their observation of the seal hunt.
Arrests had indeed been made, but I have since learned that no charges were
laid. I apologize for suggesting that charges had been laid.

CBC - Federal fisheries minister apologizes to seal hunt observers

Federal fisheries minister apologizes to seal hunt observers
Last Updated Tue, 16 May 2006 09:58:07 EDT
CBC News

Federal Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn has apologized for comments he
made in March, in which he said seal hunt observers had been charged
following an incident on the ice in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.


Federal Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn, who represents the
Newfoundland and Labrador riding of St. John's South–Mount Pearl, has
apologized for comments he made about seal hunt activists. (CBC)

INDEPTH: Seal hunt FAQs

Hearn issued a brief statement Monday, after the Humane Society of the
United States said it was prepared to sue him for libel.

"On March 31, 2006, I made a statement suggesting that individuals had
been arrested and charged in relation to their observation of the seal
hunt," Hearn's statement read.


RELATED: Apologize or get sued, activists tell Hearn

"Arrests had indeed been made, but I have since learned that no
charges were laid. I apologize for suggesting that charges had been
laid."

Hearn made the comments when he was asked to respond to calls from
politicians and union officials to bar animal rights activists from
the East Coast hunt.


FROM APRIL 10, 2006: Seal hunt activist plans court challenge on
observer permits

Hearn said Canada cannot be seen as having something to hide at the
hunt, but remarked that he would not issue observer permits to people
who had been involved in a skirmish with sealers.

"If you step over that line and try to interfere in any way with the
hunt, then you can be arrested and charged, as people were last week,"
Hearn said in the statement that drew fire from the HSUS.

Hearn's office said the minister would not comment further on his
apology.

Lawsuit might still proceed: protest group

Rebecca Aldworth, the HSUS Canadian issues director, said Hearn's
apology was "positive" but may not necessarily stop a legal action
from proceeding.

"We're evaluating today whether or not that statement will be
sufficient for us to drop the lawsuit that we were planning to wage
against the minister of fisheries," she told CBC News in an interview
Tuesday.

She said five of the seven members of an HSUS contingent, including a
journalist from the Reuters news agency, had been arrested off the
Magdalen Islands in March because they held foreign passports. All
were processed for identification purposes and were quickly released.

Fisheries officers had said they violated the rules of the hunt, which
require observers to keep at least 10 metres from sealers.

"It was a technical violation, if at all," Aldworth said.

As a result of the incident, Aldworth could not obtain an observer's
permit for the remainder of the Canadian seal hunt, including the
primary hunt off the northern coast of Newfoundland.

She said she now expects no trouble in obtaining an observer's permit
next year.

THE HUMANE SOCIETY OF THE UNITED STATES ACCEPTS APOLOGY FROM CANADIAN MINISTER OF FISHERIES TO SEAL HUNT OBSERVERS



Warns of Potential Legal Recourse for Future Permit Denials or False Statements



WASHINGTON (May 16, 2006) -The Humane Society of the United States is claiming victory today as the Canadian Minister of Fisheries and Oceans issued a formal apology for comments he made regarding a team of observers from The HSUS during the Canadian seal hunt this year.

The HSUS served a notice of libel May 4 upon Loyola Hearn and his representatives, threatening legal action for false statements they made concerning The HSUS' seal hunt observers. Hearn announced in March that The HSUS observation team was charged with violating the terms of their observation permits, however no charges were ever filed.

In his statement issued yesterday, Hearn said "On March 31, 2006, I made a statement suggesting that individuals had been arrested and charged in relation to their observation of the seal hunt. Arrests had indeed been made, but I have since learned that no charges were laid. I apologize for suggesting that charges had been laid."

"We are pleased the Minister has admitted he was in the wrong," said Rebecca Aldworth, director of Canadian wildlife issues for The HSUS. "It is clear to us the Minister acted without all the facts in this case, especially when denying us observation permits earlier this year. His actions caused us serious problems in coordinating observation of the hunt, and we expect that our observation of next year's hunt will not be hampered in the same unlawful way."

Although The HSUS's notice of libel had requested that the Minister's apology be delivered at a press conference, the Society has accepted the Minister's public statement, and will not proceed with legal action at this time. The HSUS, however, has pledged to take all appropriate legal action in the future if the Department of Fisheries and Oceans denies future observation permits or makes any further false statements about The HSUS or its representatives.

"I was not arrested, I did not in any way disrupt the seal hunt and to this day I have not been charged with any wrongdoing," continued Aldworth. "But anyone who saw the statements from the Fisheries Minister about the incident would have automatically assumed the opposite. I believe his actions were deliberate and politically motivated. With Danny Williams lobbying for a complete and unconstitutional ban on observation of the seal hunt, Minister Hearn had to look like he was taking action - and he used us for that purpose. He did so in complete violation of our rights."

MEDIA CONTACT: Belinda Mager, bmager@hsus.org, 646-469-4987

Parksville/Qualicum, BC

Baby Seal Killing is a Disgrace

July 7, 2006

On Sunday July 2, Anthony Marr, a passionate protector and lover of animals and activist passed through Qualicum Beach while travelling from Victoria to Campbell River.

This is the distance representing the length of 260,000 dead seals lined up nose to tail, of the 325,000 seals slaughtered in Canada every year.

Although most people are disgusted with the way these baby animals are bludgeoned to death annually, there are still some people who equate the seals with the demise of cod stocks or fish in general.

Reading the website of Anthony Marr I discovered some interesting facts. Go to www.HOPE-CARE.org if you want further information.

My answer to the people that still think that seals should be killed to preserve the fish stock is that there is killing and then there is slaughtering inhumanely and skinning baby seals while still alive. Clubbing the baby seals in front of their mothers is barbaric.

If you read the website, you will see that the seals did not kill the cod industry but man did. As you read on you will also see that killing the seals is counter productive to fish numbers.

The whole world is watching Canada and we do not project a good picture with this. To quote Mahatma Gandhi: "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." In that regard Canada is failing miserably.

It's time to stop this practice and time to be a more civilized and more compassionate country.

R. Kraft
Qualicum Beach



Anthony Marr, founder
Heal Our Planet Earth (HOPE)
Compassion for Animals Road Expeditions (CARE)
http://www.HOPE-CARE....
Anthony-Marr@HOPE-CARE.org
604-222-1169, toll free 1-866-822-1169

Activist hopes to drive home anti-sealing message
By Katie Schneider
The Eagle

Anthony Marr wants your attention — and the attention of everyone on the western side of the Rogers Pass.

On July 15, the wildlife preservationist and founder of Heal Our Planet Earth (HOPE) will conduct a “funeral motorcade for the seals” between Banff and Calgary, stopping in Canmore and Cochrane, to protest Canada’s seal hunt and demonstrate how far 325,000 dead seals would stretch if lined up in single file.

He said at one metre per seal, 325,000 seals would stretch 325 kilometres along the Trans-Canada Highway from Calgary to the Rogers Pass.

“The next time (people) drive to Banff I want them to think of a line of dead seals on the highway,” he said from Vancouver.

“I want to convert a dry number into a horrendous vision that will hit people on the gut level,” he said. “Anyone with compassion will probably take action given that vision.”

Marr will leave Vancouver on July 13 and arrive in Banff on July 15 where he will be joined by 10 cars of members of the Sea Shepherd Calgary Chapter (SSCC), a non-profit group who helped organize the motorcade.

The groups will arrive in Cochrane at around 10:30 a.m. and meet in a parking lot on Highway 1A.
At 11 a.m. they will depart for Calgary where Marr will give three lectures between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. at the Central Library, sponsored by SSCC.

This motorcade will be the second one of many Marr will conduct with local animal rights groups in the next five months. He is scheduled to cover 40,000 kilometres and travel to 35 states and six provinces on his fourth Compassion for Animals Road Expedition (CARE).

His main argument against what he calls the seal “massacre” is that some seals are supposedly skinned alive.

“If people don’t think being skinned alive isn’t excruciating, ask them to peel back a loose hangnail . . . ,” he said.

Marr added the Canadian government claims only two per cent are killed by being skinned alive, but he said even so, that is a large amount equating to about 7,000 seals — about seven kilometres or about 35 city blocks.

Marr said people who support the hunt argue that killing seals protects the supply of cod, but he suggests seals eat about three per cent of the cod.

Karen Orr, member of the SSCC, said the group is taking part in promoting awareness about the seal hunt because they share Marr’s philosophy.

“We want to keep it on the new government’s mind to stop it before it starts again in March.”


Anthony Marr, founder
Heal Our Planet Earth (HOPE)
Compassion for Animals Road Expeditions (CARE)
http://www.HOPE-CARE....
Anthony-Marr@HOPE-CARE.org
604-222-1169, cell (after July 19) 415-686-8789