Dear All Cape Fur Seal Supporters,
Starving male and female adult Cape fur seals dying en-mass
Starving dying endangered Cape fur seals need our
international help. Please pass this email on. See The
Namibian Newspaper article, http://www.namibian.com.na/2006/October/national/065188367E.html.
Founder of Seal Alert-SA,
Francois Hugo makes a desperate international plea to help
save these seals.
Supporters of the two
largest conservation organizations have received the
following, when asking for these organizations to help.
From International Fund for
Animal Welfare (IFAW-SA) Thank you for your inquiry.
IFAW does actively oppose the Namibian Seal Cull.
See the following link for more information: http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=173596 .If
you have any further questions, please contact us.
Sincerely, Laurie Wilson Supporter Relations
Manager International Fund for Animal Welfare.
From WWF-SA, Thank you for
writing back and following through on your concern. I know
that similar events in Norway and Canada have not affected
fur seal populations. So, for these 2 countries, we usually
suggest the animal cruelty organisations as they really are
much better at this type of campaigning and significantly
more focussed on these sorts of issues.However, I don't
have specific information about the fur seals off the South
African coast. So, if you really feel that the numbers are
being affected please don't hesitate to write to our staff
in the local National offices as they will be most informed
about the reality of the situation. It is also the national
offices who monitor these types of concerns and make
priority decisions about their areas. http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/where_we_work/africa/solutions_by_region/sout
hern_africa/index.cfm .I really hope that this helps
but if you are unable to make contact please write back and
I will try and help you further. Jackie Janosi
WWF International Online Team.
The Namibian Ministry has
been using its Sealing Industry to cover-up is 7th mass
die-off of its indigenous and endangered Cape fur seals.
Since its independence in 1990, its been increasing its
seal cull quota, to hide the evidence of mass seal
starvation, in 1990, the sealing quota was 3000. In 2006,
the sealing quota is 85 000 (the largest on record).
Faced with either admitting its
seals are starving, and with it the evidence, it prefers to
adopt a policy of seal culling (clubbing weak and dying
nursing pups in birthing grounds) to conceal instead, the
dead and dying. To which the European Union has been eager
to acquire these baby nursing pelts, since the remaining
sealing countries of Canada, Norway, Greenland and Russia
banned the practice of slaughter nursing baby seals in
1987.
The Cape fur seal population has
declined over 50% in the last decade (and still no
international alarm bells ring).
Scientists, government officials
and leading conservation organizations on both sides of the
border (South Africa and Namibia), are attempting to
downplay this 7th mass die-ff as a species over-populated
and that is correcting itself every four years.
Seal Alert-SA believes this is an
international conservation fraud of the highest
criminality. The current seal population is down to its
1982 levels in 2006. Based on average pup densities on
existing colonies, the Cape fur seal population in pristine
pre-exploited periods, would have numbered in excess of 11
million seals. The highest peak of this population of 324
000 pups or 1.3 million seals in 1993, is a far
cry, from being near over-populated. Since this peak, the
seals have endured mass die-offs from starvation, in 1994,
1995, 1996, 2001 and now in 2006. Where between one half
and one third died in each incident.
With over 1000 ha protected for
seals on offshore islands, extinction on 99%, clearly
points to a seal population in severe trouble.
Although listed as an endangered
Appendix II CITES species, CITES continually allows the
international trade, even when the Namibian sealers export
117 000 skins on a 60 000 quota in 2000 (another year of
mass starvation).
Either we save them, or we lose them.
The abuse and cruelty, and inhumanness displayed by all is
a travesty. Not even non-endangered, non-indigenous
domesticated dogs, would be allowed to starve in their
hundreds of thousands, but here in Africa - protected
seals can.
Is this what wildlife conservation has
become, fraud, cover-ups and blame the weather - shameful.
When a species of marine mammal is dying right before our
eyes, and instead of offering to help, we further condemn
them as over-populated.
Namibia end your sealing policy, now.
You have been exposed, for the 7th time.
For the Seals
Francois Hugo Seal Alert-SA
27-21-790 8774
