URGENT: WHALES BEING SLAUGHTERED in CANADA - HORROR STORY UNFOLDING
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New York Whale and Dolphin Action League
Nov 27, 2008, 11:23:55 PM11/27/08
to westchester...@yahoogroups.com, AR News
URGENT: A HORROR STORY IS UNFOLDING IN CANADA:
The slaughter (by Nunavet) of what was thought to be 200 (which we now know
was underestimated) narwhales "trapped in the ice" was bad enough; now the
horror has turned into a blood bath of up to 500 narwhales! This atrocity
is putting the area's population of narwhales at risk of extinction.
Please contact Minister Gail Shea and tell her to put a stop to the
slaughter of these hundreds of narwhales. Tell her to call off the hunters and
send in the nearest icebreaker immediately. Also tell her that the annual
quota for whales 130 should be respected and any additional "takes" applied
to next year's allotment for the Nunavet. Tell her whale meat is
contaminated, and the real reason the slaughter continues is for the single
ivory tusk, worth $1500 a piece.
This is not about subsistence tribal whaling, this is about wholesale
slaughter and wholesale marketing of ivory tusks. Here are the contact
numbers. Let's flood the office of Gail Shea with letters immediately, to
save the lives of these whales.
Taffy
The Hon. Gail A. Shea
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
<mailto:Shea.G@parl.gc.ca>Shea.G@parl.gc.ca
Telephone: (613) 992-9223
Fax: (613) 992-1974
Dear MInister Shea:
It is simply unfathomable that the DFO has been as exceedingly negligent in
protecting the narwhales of Pond Inlet as it has been. Not only does the
condemnable lack of action by the DFO reveal the agency's actual utter
disregard for the welfare of its natural resources, but supports an illegal
disregard for the rule of law established for the welfare of marine species.
I speak for hundreds of animal welfare and wildlife specialists in my area,
and while we are far from the scene, I advise you that the concern for
these whales is exceedingly great. We don't need to remind you that we are
in a global crisis and the extinction of species is 100 times its normal
pace due to human activities.
If the native Nunavet could not accurately estimate the number of entrapped
whales ("200"), as it now seems there are more than double the initial
tallies (closer to 500), one can discount their statements that the
population is "healthy." In reality, a population could be called
"healthy" to justify a mass slaughter.
Narwhale tusks can fetch $1500 a piece on the market. What do you think is
the real motivation force here? The quota for hunting whales should be
adjusted over the next several years to account for the slaughter in excess
of their 130 number tally this year. This is the only proper course to take
in response to this outrageous killing spree.
It was reported that the nearest icebreaker was 50 km away from the
carnage. In that case, the DFO should be condemned even further, as 50 km
is an easy distance to travel, despite the conditions, to save an entire
population of cetaceans.
Now a major portion of the global population of narwhales, and certainly
this specific population and its genetic diversity, are poised for
annihilation.
-We can not urge you more strongly and with more urgency to call off any
hunting activities immediately and send the icebreaker to the scene. In
addition, you must please advise the Nunavet to vacate the scene at once.
Otherwise the blood of this species falls on the regulatory body that
failed to act, allowed an essentially illegal mass slaughter to occur, and
brought about a collapse of the ecosystem that the narwhales are an
integral part of.
If the DFO is ridiculously concerned that "the noise of the icebreaker will
scare the narwhales," what do you think the sound of gunshots next to their
faces, and the slaughter of their close kindred is doing to them? That is a
poor excuse for what is likely a lazy and apathetic attitude, leading to
the utter failure of the DFO's objectives by the DFO itself.
In addition, it is essential that the DFO create an proper marine mammal
stranding response team to immediately address future crises such as this,
for whatever measures are in place are pitifully, woefully inadequate.
Sincerely,
Taffy Williams
Taffy Lee Williams
New York Whale and Dolphin Action League
PO Box 273
Tuckahoe, NY 10707 USA
914-793-9186
407-404-2046
<http://www.ny4whales.org>www.ny4whales.org
When we save whales, we save ourselves.
Taffy Lee Williams
New York Whale and Dolphin Action League
PO Box 273
Yonkers, NY 10707 USA
www.ny4whales.org
914-793-9186 / 407-404-2046 cell
Because when we save whales, we save ourselves.
Subscribe to this group by sending an email to
subscribe-ny4whales@yahoogroups.com
The slaughter (by Nunavet) of what was thought to be 200 (which we now know
was underestimated) narwhales "trapped in the ice" was bad enough; now the
horror has turned into a blood bath of up to 500 narwhales! This atrocity
is putting the area's population of narwhales at risk of extinction.
Please contact Minister Gail Shea and tell her to put a stop to the
slaughter of these hundreds of narwhales. Tell her to call off the hunters and
send in the nearest icebreaker immediately. Also tell her that the annual
quota for whales 130 should be respected and any additional "takes" applied
to next year's allotment for the Nunavet. Tell her whale meat is
contaminated, and the real reason the slaughter continues is for the single
ivory tusk, worth $1500 a piece.
This is not about subsistence tribal whaling, this is about wholesale
slaughter and wholesale marketing of ivory tusks. Here are the contact
numbers. Let's flood the office of Gail Shea with letters immediately, to
save the lives of these whales.
Taffy
The Hon. Gail A. Shea
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
<mailto:Shea.G@parl.gc.ca>Shea.G@parl.gc.ca
Telephone: (613) 992-9223
Fax: (613) 992-1974
Dear MInister Shea:
It is simply unfathomable that the DFO has been as exceedingly negligent in
protecting the narwhales of Pond Inlet as it has been. Not only does the
condemnable lack of action by the DFO reveal the agency's actual utter
disregard for the welfare of its natural resources, but supports an illegal
disregard for the rule of law established for the welfare of marine species.
I speak for hundreds of animal welfare and wildlife specialists in my area,
and while we are far from the scene, I advise you that the concern for
these whales is exceedingly great. We don't need to remind you that we are
in a global crisis and the extinction of species is 100 times its normal
pace due to human activities.
If the native Nunavet could not accurately estimate the number of entrapped
whales ("200"), as it now seems there are more than double the initial
tallies (closer to 500), one can discount their statements that the
population is "healthy." In reality, a population could be called
"healthy" to justify a mass slaughter.
Narwhale tusks can fetch $1500 a piece on the market. What do you think is
the real motivation force here? The quota for hunting whales should be
adjusted over the next several years to account for the slaughter in excess
of their 130 number tally this year. This is the only proper course to take
in response to this outrageous killing spree.
It was reported that the nearest icebreaker was 50 km away from the
carnage. In that case, the DFO should be condemned even further, as 50 km
is an easy distance to travel, despite the conditions, to save an entire
population of cetaceans.
Now a major portion of the global population of narwhales, and certainly
this specific population and its genetic diversity, are poised for
annihilation.
-We can not urge you more strongly and with more urgency to call off any
hunting activities immediately and send the icebreaker to the scene. In
addition, you must please advise the Nunavet to vacate the scene at once.
Otherwise the blood of this species falls on the regulatory body that
failed to act, allowed an essentially illegal mass slaughter to occur, and
brought about a collapse of the ecosystem that the narwhales are an
integral part of.
If the DFO is ridiculously concerned that "the noise of the icebreaker will
scare the narwhales," what do you think the sound of gunshots next to their
faces, and the slaughter of their close kindred is doing to them? That is a
poor excuse for what is likely a lazy and apathetic attitude, leading to
the utter failure of the DFO's objectives by the DFO itself.
In addition, it is essential that the DFO create an proper marine mammal
stranding response team to immediately address future crises such as this,
for whatever measures are in place are pitifully, woefully inadequate.
Sincerely,
Taffy Williams
Taffy Lee Williams
New York Whale and Dolphin Action League
PO Box 273
Tuckahoe, NY 10707 USA
914-793-9186
407-404-2046
<http://www.ny4whales.org>www.ny4whales.org
When we save whales, we save ourselves.
Taffy Lee Williams
New York Whale and Dolphin Action League
PO Box 273
Yonkers, NY 10707 USA
www.ny4whales.org
914-793-9186 / 407-404-2046 cell
Because when we save whales, we save ourselves.
Subscribe to this group by sending an email to
subscribe-ny4whales@yahoogroups.com
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