Few animals are as defenseless as the Arctic seal pup. These little plush toys are too slow to escape from predator attacks while they are on the ice and they don’t yet have the fur to withstand the freezing water temperatures.
Every year, the Canadian government, under pressure from fishermen who insist that seals break and contaminate their nets, sets a quota for seal hunting. The bloody massacre consists of stunning the seals with clubs to remove their fine skin, which will be used in fur trade, while the animal is still alive. If the animal were to die, the skin would stick to the flesh and tear during the extraction. This year, the Canadian government set a record by establishing a quota of 350,000 Arctic seals to be killed.
But what is truly incredible, surpassing the limits of imagination, is the solution that the Norwegian government devised for the same problem. As they don’t have a significant fur industry, hunters in Norway are not interested in killing Norwegian seals. So, the government, following the idea of its Minister of Fisheries, Svein Ludvigsen, the same minister who supported the Japanese proposal on whale hunting at the last International Whaling Commission, designed a tourism plan that allows visitors to the country to indulge in the massacre.
Some tourism companies are already offering unbelievable packages. The company NorSafari offers a 4-day hunting package for $1,100, guaranteeing the bloodthirsty tourists a total of two seals effectively killed. The package does not include accommodation or meals but ensures a refund if the desired prey is not obtained. It also offers an extra bonus of a seal pup for just $70, a real bargain. The package includes specific training for beginners and souvenir photos of the brave hunter with their bloodied prey.
Has the world gone mad? What kind of person would pay to spend their vacation bludgeoning seal pups to death? It is difficult to comprehend the motivation. Could it be that there is no image more endearing than that of an Arctic seal pup with its big black eyes and frightened gaze? The answer lies with Minister Ludvigsen, who claims that the new project will be a success and that there is no difference between bludgeoning a seal pup or hunting an elk. On the other hand, educating fishermen requires money and effort, while attracting tourists for a sadistic business brings profits.
Sensible men and women on this planet must start demanding an end to this madness. It is no longer just the seals that concern us. It is humanity itself, which cannot live without violence, needing to go to the Arctic for the experience of a blood and desperate screams orgy. It is the men who govern the world who must be held accountable by the people for their actions because if not, it will be the people who ultimately condemn them for playing with life, sanity, and coherence. If we don’t reverse this bloody situation, we will lose more than a handful of seals; we will irreversibly lose ourselves.
If you feel the need to protest, don’t write to Minister Ludvigsen or the Minister of Fisheries in Canada; they don’t care about your opinion. Direct your protest or proposal to the Embassies of Norway and Canada in your country.
“You cannot defend what you do not love, and you cannot love what you do not know.”