From: SEAL ALERT-SA
Subject: Now France Knows About Namibia's SEAL CLUBBING
Date: May 4, 2008
Dear All Cape Fur Seal Supporters,
French
TV Program "View from the Sky"
I trust you all are well and in good health.
The 6 babies, which I call my
six-pack, are doing well. Unfortunately, due to severe convulsions
one of the babies named JM has become blind, I am hoping that
somehow she will regain her sight. If not, she will need life-time
care and I plan to rig a harness around her when she is older to
take her safely swimming with me in the seas. JT, the female seal
pup from last year, refuses to go back into the wild, and has
instead adopted the "6-pack" as her babies. It is the most amazing
thing, coming into the centre each morning, to be greeted by this
little seal colony, fast asleep, all onto top of each other and how
they interact and follow their adopted "mommy JT".
A few months ago internationally
famous wildlife photographer Yann Arthus Bertrand did some filming
with me
http://programmes.france2.fr/vu-du-ciel/accueil.htm.
My interview
with Yann Arthus Bertrand was broadcasted on France 2 channel last
Wednesday. Since then, the Seal Alert has had over 3000 people
logging in per day.
If you get a chance please have a look at the guestbook comments on
the Seal Alert site
http://pub21.bravenet.com/guestbook/1768576674 .
You can download the video with this link (high
quality):
http://dl.free.fr/eBvNXhyk2/seal-alert-vue-du-ciel-france-20080501.mpeg,
this link was kindly sent to me by
http://www.chasse-aux-phoques.com.
This
program featured my work in Hout Bay and the seal clubbing in
Namibia, amazing footage.
Have a look, its well worth it. Namibia should be ashamed now the
whole of France is aware.
This past week, we have been filming for another TV program this
time for UK Channel 4 to be shown during prime-time soon. It has
some great underwater interactions with the seals and even a few
seal disentanglements caught on film (more on this later).
Nikki Botha has done an amazing job
of threatening the Minister of Environment with legal action, as
such we have a meeting on the 12th. I have prepared a 100 slide,
power-point to show just how bad conditions are on the 1% of
the offshore islands that seals are left on ( I will put this
presentation on the Seal Alert site soon to download), we will also
push for plastic strapping used in the tuna fishing industry, which
entangles and mutilates thousands of seals each year, to be banned,
as well as guns in fishing. So wish us luck, this is the big one to
get seals back on islands.
On youtube I have released two new
clips, one of the seal clubbing in Namibia, as it actually happens
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=uzPcAvEARwI)
and the other, a short face-to-face clip of my meeting with the
Namibian Prime Minister (http://youtube.com/watch?v=tfvKhdutH9w).
Funding issues. It is not easy
protecting over a million seals in two countries and trying to
physically save them as well. Each seal I rescue costs money, each
baby seal alone requires 12 months of rehab at a cost of about R10
000 each. The costs of seal rescue are massive and fish costs just
keep going up and up, as fish stocks decline. It is most difficult
trying to fund this alone. As my funds are almost depleted once
again, I have resorted to manufacturing baby fake fur seal toys to
sell to the tourists in a further attempt to help raise funds to
purchase fish to rescue and disentangle seals. This also increases
my work-load. As well, without going into a long story, if possible
it is hoped to acquire a larger boat for seal rescue and the long
term treatment of baby seals at sea. A catamaran boat over 36 ft
costs over one million rand, I have found a boat for 190 000 rand
or $23 000. It could be ideal, if sufficient funds are forth
coming, and it still needs some work. (see pic
below)
I really need a more stable platform to work from and to do the
baby seal rehab more effectively, including disentanglement of
seals. In essence I need to spend more time with the seals. My plan
as well, in the future, is to film everything (creates massive
awareness) and to take the boat with seals out to the offshore
islands, and maybe even up to Namibia.
So if, less than 300 of us put in $100
each, we could acquire this boat as a beginning. If you can help
either towards the purchase of this boat or my daily fish costs
which exceed R400 a day, please help.
My banking details
below.
Seal
Alert-SA Postal Address. SEAL ALERT-SA, BOX 221, POSTNET, HOUT BAY,
7872, SOUTH AFRICA
HEREWITH IS FURTHER DETAILS FOR BANK TRANSFERS:
ZAR is South
AfricanRand
More information to
be able to send the money via internet:
SEAL ALERT-SA ACC :
911 2201 321
BRANCH CODE : 632 005 (for Europe use this number as
the IBAN or BIC code - 632 005)
SWIFT CODE : ABSAZAJJ
BANK :
ABSA
SA NAT.CLEARING
CODE
BIC: (SWIFT-CODE)
ABSAZAJJ
Bank name : ABSA
Address : DELPHI ARCH OFFICE PARK, RAATS
DRIVE, TABLE VIEW
City/code : TABLE VIEW, 7439
Country : South
Africa
For the Seals
Francois Hugo Seal Alert-SA
link to
sealmancam
