May 2011 Newsletter
Namibian Seal Slaughter
by Pat Dickens
Several international groups have joined forces and are calling for a consumer boycott of all Namibian produce and tourism, which includes de Beers diamonds, Heineken, and Guinness. The boycott has the backing of a number of South African celebrities, including Miss SA.
As of 2010, the Namibian seal cull became the largest slaughter of its kind on the planet. Since the EU ban on seal products, the Namibian seal slaughter is now officially responsible for more deaths than the Canadian hunt. Sadly, very few people are even aware that this practice exists. There are no protests, no watchdogs overseeing the process and virtually no journalists covering the story. Consequently the levels of cruelty and violence are way more extreme than the Canadian hunt.
Each year, 85 000 baby Cape Fur seals, still nursing from their mothers teats, are savagely beaten to death on the beaches of Namibia. Their pelts are sold for a mere US$7.00. A further 6 000 adult bull seals are shot at point blank range so that the bones in their penises can be used to make an ineffective aphrodisiac. These animals are a protected species and appear on appendix 2 of CITES. Namibia is the only country in the world to allow the clubbing of nursing pups.
Under the Animal Protection Act of 1962 (Namibia) the SPCA have the legal mandate to arrest and detain anyone for beating an animal to death. The Namibian SPCA refuse to get involved on the basis that, according to the semantics of Namibian Law, a seal is not classified as an animal.
MISA (Media Institute for Southern Africa) has determined that the Namibian Government are using non existent statutes to arrest and detain journalists who attempt to cover the story. See http://www.namibian.com.na/index.php?id=28&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=58162&no_cache=1
The Namibian Government claim this hunt is necessary in that it provides much needed employment. Since independence in 1990, the amount of people involved in the cull have dropped from 160 to 81, yet the TAC (total allowable catch) has been increased over 800% from 9 000 pups to 85 000 pups and 6 000 bulls. The workers live in tin and cardboard shacks on the beach and earn below minimum wage. They are only seasonally employed, for four months of the year. There is no profit sharing scheme in place for them where Cape Fur seal coats can fetch as much as US$30 000.00 quite easily. Hatem Yavuz is the one and only man behind this massacre.
The Namibian Government also have the gall to claim that this hunt is to protect their fishing stocks. They have produced no peer reviewed scientific document to prove the seals are responsible. Independent research indicates the decline in hake stocks is a matter of the adult hake eating the juvenile hake as there are insufficient seals to thin out the adult hake populations. Further more, since independence in 1990, the Namibians increased their annual fishing harvest from 300 thousand tons to 600 thousand tons. This has resulted in several mass die offs, the latest being in 2006 where some 350 000 seals died from starvation. This is the largest die off of any marine mammal in recorded history.
The annual cull brings in between half a million to a million Namibian dollars in revenue for the Government. Models based on eco tourism from several other African countries show that up to 10 times more revenue could easily be generated from the seal colony. A medium sized casino can employ around 1 000 people all year round.
For further information, refer to the website "The Seals of Nam" https://sites.google.com/site/thesealsofnam/ where you can find footage, photos, statistics, and who the campaign organizers are targeting.
As of 2010, the Namibian seal cull became the largest slaughter of its kind on the planet. Since the EU ban on seal products, the Namibian seal slaughter is now officially responsible for more deaths than the Canadian hunt. Sadly, very few people are even aware that this practice exists. There are no protests, no watchdogs overseeing the process and virtually no journalists covering the story. Consequently the levels of cruelty and violence are way more extreme than the Canadian hunt.
Each year, 85 000 baby Cape Fur seals, still nursing from their mothers teats, are savagely beaten to death on the beaches of Namibia. Their pelts are sold for a mere US$7.00. A further 6 000 adult bull seals are shot at point blank range so that the bones in their penises can be used to make an ineffective aphrodisiac. These animals are a protected species and appear on appendix 2 of CITES. Namibia is the only country in the world to allow the clubbing of nursing pups.
Under the Animal Protection Act of 1962 (Namibia) the SPCA have the legal mandate to arrest and detain anyone for beating an animal to death. The Namibian SPCA refuse to get involved on the basis that, according to the semantics of Namibian Law, a seal is not classified as an animal.
MISA (Media Institute for Southern Africa) has determined that the Namibian Government are using non existent statutes to arrest and detain journalists who attempt to cover the story. See http://www.namibian.com.na/index.php?id=28&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=58162&no_cache=1
The Namibian Government claim this hunt is necessary in that it provides much needed employment. Since independence in 1990, the amount of people involved in the cull have dropped from 160 to 81, yet the TAC (total allowable catch) has been increased over 800% from 9 000 pups to 85 000 pups and 6 000 bulls. The workers live in tin and cardboard shacks on the beach and earn below minimum wage. They are only seasonally employed, for four months of the year. There is no profit sharing scheme in place for them where Cape Fur seal coats can fetch as much as US$30 000.00 quite easily. Hatem Yavuz is the one and only man behind this massacre.
The Namibian Government also have the gall to claim that this hunt is to protect their fishing stocks. They have produced no peer reviewed scientific document to prove the seals are responsible. Independent research indicates the decline in hake stocks is a matter of the adult hake eating the juvenile hake as there are insufficient seals to thin out the adult hake populations. Further more, since independence in 1990, the Namibians increased their annual fishing harvest from 300 thousand tons to 600 thousand tons. This has resulted in several mass die offs, the latest being in 2006 where some 350 000 seals died from starvation. This is the largest die off of any marine mammal in recorded history.
The annual cull brings in between half a million to a million Namibian dollars in revenue for the Government. Models based on eco tourism from several other African countries show that up to 10 times more revenue could easily be generated from the seal colony. A medium sized casino can employ around 1 000 people all year round.
For further information, refer to the website "The Seals of Nam" https://sites.google.com/site/thesealsofnam/ where you can find footage, photos, statistics, and who the campaign organizers are targeting.
Victory for Tony the Tiger
by WSPA
We are happy to be able to inform you that, on May 6, a Louisiana judge ordered the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to permanently stop renewing the state permit that allows “Tony the Tiger” to be housed at the truck stop.
Thanks to the work done by WSPA partner organizations Animal Legal Defense Fund and Big Cat Rescue – in addition to the 40,000+ supporters who signed our “Free Tony the Tiger” petition last November – Tony will be freed from his roadside cage by December. He has languished in poor conditions for more than 10 years, and now can begin a new life of freedom in a sanctuary.
We’re so grateful to be able to share this wonderful news with you, as a reminder of what can happen when people stand together on behalf of animals. Thank you for everything you do every day to help animals like Tony. WSPA will continue to monitor Tony's situation and future relocation to a sanctuary.
by Silla Smith
Regional Director, North America
Thanks to the work done by WSPA partner organizations Animal Legal Defense Fund and Big Cat Rescue – in addition to the 40,000+ supporters who signed our “Free Tony the Tiger” petition last November – Tony will be freed from his roadside cage by December. He has languished in poor conditions for more than 10 years, and now can begin a new life of freedom in a sanctuary.
We’re so grateful to be able to share this wonderful news with you, as a reminder of what can happen when people stand together on behalf of animals. Thank you for everything you do every day to help animals like Tony. WSPA will continue to monitor Tony's situation and future relocation to a sanctuary.
by Silla Smith
Regional Director, North America
100 Dogs Died in Tuzla, Bosnia Herezegovina
by Pia Berrend
More than hundred dogs have died of Distemper in the Municipality of Tuzla
The shelter in Tuzla is located on a former waste dump. The conditions, both for the animals and the volunteers, are horrible. The shelter has no electricity nor water. The municipality delivers the water by tanker and it is stored in huge containers on the shelter location.
More than a hundred dogs have died on 7th and 8th of May 2011 after they drank from the delivered water. The volunteers reported that after drinking the water, the dogs had water eyes, swolen noses and foam at their mouth. All attempts to save the dogs were in vain, the dogs died a long and painful death. The shelter counts 500 dogs in total. A water testing has been ordered by a German organization.
UPDATE: May 5, 2011
The blood tests of the dead dogs confirmed, that what killed them was Distemper.
200 dogs have already died, many are sick. Those who show no symptoms have been isolated.
A group of Austrian veterinarians will be leaving Graz on Saturday May 14, 2011 for Tuzla.
Message from a volunteer working at the shelter:
We would like to ask the whole world to help us ... Sometimes I wish to wipe out all this and run away from this state ... I can no longer bear this pain and this weakness ... I can not watch the puppies abandoned on the street, I can not listen to their crying, and it happens every day ... I have no power to force the leaders of this country to do something ... I'm fighting, but every day is difficult and I wonder whether it makes sense to try to...Please spread my prayer ... help us ... please force this country to do something ... we need your help ... Please stop the suffering and primitivism, stop the savagery and violence, force our people to humanity because it is the only way to change something in this country ... I'm running out of power ... pain becomes unbearable, the animals are suffering and screams were louder every day ... Please, animals are innocent, save them from us :(
SIGN and SHARE the PETITION:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/help-needed-in-tuzla-bosnia-urgent/
UPDATE: MAY 20, 2011
Unfortunately there was NO happy ending for Tuzla dogs. The mission from the Austrian vets failed.
They would not even let these Vets enter the country, thus, half of the 600 dogs have died Horribly.
The vets did there best to get in. Calling their consuls from the border, who called many Bosnian officials,
with No luck. They were turned away. Very very sad! (Dawn Groth)
The shelter in Tuzla is located on a former waste dump. The conditions, both for the animals and the volunteers, are horrible. The shelter has no electricity nor water. The municipality delivers the water by tanker and it is stored in huge containers on the shelter location.
More than a hundred dogs have died on 7th and 8th of May 2011 after they drank from the delivered water. The volunteers reported that after drinking the water, the dogs had water eyes, swolen noses and foam at their mouth. All attempts to save the dogs were in vain, the dogs died a long and painful death. The shelter counts 500 dogs in total. A water testing has been ordered by a German organization.
UPDATE: May 5, 2011
The blood tests of the dead dogs confirmed, that what killed them was Distemper.
200 dogs have already died, many are sick. Those who show no symptoms have been isolated.
A group of Austrian veterinarians will be leaving Graz on Saturday May 14, 2011 for Tuzla.
Message from a volunteer working at the shelter:
We would like to ask the whole world to help us ... Sometimes I wish to wipe out all this and run away from this state ... I can no longer bear this pain and this weakness ... I can not watch the puppies abandoned on the street, I can not listen to their crying, and it happens every day ... I have no power to force the leaders of this country to do something ... I'm fighting, but every day is difficult and I wonder whether it makes sense to try to...Please spread my prayer ... help us ... please force this country to do something ... we need your help ... Please stop the suffering and primitivism, stop the savagery and violence, force our people to humanity because it is the only way to change something in this country ... I'm running out of power ... pain becomes unbearable, the animals are suffering and screams were louder every day ... Please, animals are innocent, save them from us :(
SIGN and SHARE the PETITION:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/help-needed-in-tuzla-bosnia-urgent/
UPDATE: MAY 20, 2011
Unfortunately there was NO happy ending for Tuzla dogs. The mission from the Austrian vets failed.
They would not even let these Vets enter the country, thus, half of the 600 dogs have died Horribly.
The vets did there best to get in. Calling their consuls from the border, who called many Bosnian officials,
with No luck. They were turned away. Very very sad! (Dawn Groth)
MFA Undercover Investigation Leads to Calf Rescue
by Mercy for Animals
Mercy For Animals’ undercover investigation at E6 Cattle in Hart, Texas, showed workers bashing in the skulls of calves with pickaxes, dragging them by their ears, standing on their necks, burning out their horns without painkillers, and neglecting sick calves to die in their filthy crates.
Some very excellent news in regards to 4 of those baby calves, has recently come to my attention.
These poor tortured souls have been rescued as a direct result of MFA’s investigation. The lucky survivors – named Roy, Ari, Mercy, and Bob – are now out of harm’s way and recovering at Gentle Barn Sanctuary in California.
In coordination with MFA’s brave undercover investigator, who purchased the calves from the owner of E6 for a mere $10 each, last month Nathan Runkle (MFA Founder/Executive Director) traveled to Texas to take part in this lifesaving mission.
These “crossbred” calves, who were mere weeks old when they were rescued, had little economic value to this factory farm, and consequently were denied proper veterinary care or medical treatment.
But to MFA, these sentient animals deserved kindness, care, and a second chance at life. Roy, Ari, Mercy, and Bob are now serving as ambassadors for the over 10,000 calves left behind at E6 – and the millions of others who are abused and exploited on factory farms nationwide.
Please View a moving new film documenting these calves’ journey from a life of cruelty to comfort.
Some very excellent news in regards to 4 of those baby calves, has recently come to my attention.
These poor tortured souls have been rescued as a direct result of MFA’s investigation. The lucky survivors – named Roy, Ari, Mercy, and Bob – are now out of harm’s way and recovering at Gentle Barn Sanctuary in California.
In coordination with MFA’s brave undercover investigator, who purchased the calves from the owner of E6 for a mere $10 each, last month Nathan Runkle (MFA Founder/Executive Director) traveled to Texas to take part in this lifesaving mission.
These “crossbred” calves, who were mere weeks old when they were rescued, had little economic value to this factory farm, and consequently were denied proper veterinary care or medical treatment.
But to MFA, these sentient animals deserved kindness, care, and a second chance at life. Roy, Ari, Mercy, and Bob are now serving as ambassadors for the over 10,000 calves left behind at E6 – and the millions of others who are abused and exploited on factory farms nationwide.
Please View a moving new film documenting these calves’ journey from a life of cruelty to comfort.
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