The EU Ban on Seal Products

I received this email response this morning:
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Dear Madam,

You recently urged me to support the ban on trade in seal products.

I am glad to announce you that the ban on trade in seal products has been adopted today by 550 votes in favour, 49 against and 41 abstentions. I was one of the 550 pro votes.

The alternative proposals by the UEN on "wild animals" and on the authorisation to kill seals without "useless pains or suffering" has been rejected by 435 votes (174 in favour).

From 6 May onwards you will be able to find the adopted text on:

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/activities/plenary/ta.do?language=EN

Kind regards,

Bart Staes

MEP (European Greens)

www.bartstaes.eu


PRESS RELEASE - Strasbourg, 5 May 2009

Seal trade ban

Greens welcome EU Parliament vote for seal trade ban

Today in the European Parliament's plenary session, an overwhelming majority of MEPs voted in favour of a ban on the commercial trade of seal products in the EU. (1)

Caroline Lucas, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament intergroup on animal protection and co-sponsor of a EP written declaration against the trade in seal products in 2006, commented:

"I am delighted that Parliament has voted to ban the trade of seal products. By closing the door on fur and other seal products, Parliament has taken meaningful action to reduce the scale of cruel commercial seal killing across the world.

The result pays tribute to the determination of all who persisted in demanding a ban when others said it was impossible. It goes to show that it is possible to galvanise political will and achieve positive results with the support of NGOs and the overwhelming balance of public opinion.

Today's vote marks a clear rejection of the draftswoman Diana Wallis' approach. She was clearly out of step with public opinion and political will by calling for a label on seal products instead of a ban."

Carl Schlyter, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament intergroup on animal protection, added:

"I hope that the ban on the trade in seal products will save save hundreds of thousands of seals from being clubbed and shot under cruel conditions in Canada and elsewhere.

Parliament's vote is a victory against cruelty and a setback for the Swedish government which shamelessly presented itself as the EU's most stubborn opponent of the ban."

*** ENDS***

Notes to editors:

(1) 550 votes in favour, 49 against, 41 abstentions.

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From: Patricia McCauley-Najafabadi [mailto:p.najafabadi@gmail.com]
Sent: 01 April 2008 08:08
To: FORD Glyn; HUDGHTON Ian; JACKSON Caroline; KAMALL Syed; KARIM Sajjad; LUCAS Caroline; MCAVAN Linda; MORGAN Eluned; PARISH Neil; struanmep@aol.com; BREPOELS Frieda; BUSQUIN Philippe; RIES Frédérique; DEPREZ Gerard; DUQUESNE Antoine; LANGENDRIES Raymond; STAES Bart; THYSSEN Marianne; BUSK Niels; CHRISTENSEN Ole; JØRGENSEN Dan
Subject: Seal Hunt


Dear Sir or Madam,

I am asking you to please convey my concerns to the European Parliament with a request that the members vote to protect the seal by banning all seal products into European markets.

Sealing has no place in the 21st century. It is barbaric, uncivilized and unbelievable cruel.

The Canadian government is trying to convince the Parliament that the seals being killed are all adults when in fact they are not. This is because the government of Canada defines an “adult” seal as any seal over three weeks of age. This is deceptive terminology.

The Canadian government claims the hunt is 'humane'. If the hunt is “humane” as the Canadian government insists it is then why is it illegal to observe the killing of a seal (yes, that's right, they have actually made a law that you are not allowed to take a picture of or video or even see a sealer within range of killing a seal. I thank God that some Seal Defenders managed to get film footage in spite if it. Seal pups have been filmed suffering in agony on the ice after being clubbed, stabbed, shot or kicked by sealers !


The harps seals are also being threatened by global warming which is causing loss of ice habitat and this is not factored into the quota decisions of the government.


The government of Canada tries to link the seal hunt with aboriginal communities despite the fact that the commercial hunt is not an aboriginal hunt. No one is opposing Inuit sealing in the far north. The opposition is to the mass slaughter in Eastern Canada especially Newfoundland where the aboriginal peoples were exterminated a century ago. There are no native communities in Newfoundland.

The Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans has a record of incompetence with regard to management of the fisheries.

Every single commercial fishery in Canada is in trouble because of DFO mismanagement

Thank you Dear Sir for reading this.

Sincerely,

Patricia McCauley-Najafabadi
xxxxxx Street
Pittsburgh, PA. 15xxx
Phone: xxx-xxx-3810