Ban the Seal Hunt in Norway

​worldanimalnews.com/urgent-sign-respect-for-animals-letter-urging-norway-to-end-their-barbaric-seal-hunt-this-year/

Despite coronavirus distancing measures put in place across the globe, the Norwegian seal hunt is intended to go on as planned with a projected 18, 548 harp seals set to be slaughtered. The news that the seal hunt was going to commence has angered animal welfare groups who are urging the government to ban the hunt this year out of concern for both human and animal welfare.

First of all, it is reported that an animal welfare inspector will not be on board during this year's hunt which poses significant problems. Without an animal welfare inspector on board, the hunters are not going to be held accountable for what they're doing during this hunt. Despite the hunt being incredibly barbaric, there has always been an animal welfare inspector who ensures that the seals are killed within appropriate guidelines set out prior to the hunt. The Inspector can also lay charges against participants who fail to hunt within the welfare standards set out which leads us to our next problem. Some of the crew participating in these hunts have already faced animal cruelty charges and now there is noone there to ensure they do not engage in the same activities that had them charged in the first place.

Animal welfare groups are calling out the hunt's hypocrisy regarding covid-19 and the safety of the crew. The inspector is not participating due to concerns of the virus spreading and yet the rest of the crew are not being held to that same standard, essentially putting them all at risk of contracting / passing around the virus. This hunt going forward is putting all of the crew members at risk of getting seriously ill which and possibly bringing this virus back to spread throughout their community. It makes absolutely no sense from a health perspective why the Norwegian government wouldn't recognize that this is a recipe for disaster.

Finally, the seal hunt is fucking abhorrent. These poor animals are chased on sea ice, fleeing for their lives until they are clubbed repeatedly and dragged across the ice. The visuals of bright red blood splatter across the crisp, white sea ice, is one that has been burned into my mind. There is no necessity in this whatsoever, we can all survive without seal skin / fur products, so I fail to how the pros outweigh the possible cons in this situation. 

At a time when our planet is suffering, animals are rapidly going extinct, habitats are being destroyed, sea ice is melting across the globe etc., we mustn't be allowing these sort of mass slaughter events. Where's the logic in allowing almost twenty thousand seals to be slaughtered when I'm sure within the next 20 years their habitat will be completely decimated? Humans continue to destroy the planet and everything that lives on it without regard for the non-human inhabitants. We are disgraceful, shameful, and sickeningly profit driven.

It's time to ban the seal hunt across the globe once and for all. Stop contributing to the demise of animals in mass quantities, we must be trying to protect them and preserve them, not wipe the off the face of the planet.

Head to the link at the top of the page to the original story and follow the link to add your signatures to a petition urging the Norwegian government to end the hunt!

HAPPY VEG