Can you please help us in the global effort to end the Canadian baby Harp seal hunt by posting this editorial by Sir Paul and Heather-Mills McCartney on your site.
This is a high-profile campaign where celebrities, A-rated famous chefs, and A-rated restaurants have joined the boycott of Canadian seafood so that the cruel killings of the Canadian baby Harp seals can end before March of 2006.
Please see all of the chefs and restaurants who have joined the boycott on the www.protectseals.org site.
There are so many organizations working on this issue such as HSUS(The Humane Society of the United States); Sea Shepherd Conservation Society; Harpseals.org, etc. Please see the following sites:
www.harpseals.org; www.protectseals.org (Humane Society's site);
and, www.seashepherd.org (Paul Watson's site - co-founder of Greenpeace)
This is the worst deliberate marine mammal killing in the World. Last year over 350,000 baby Harp seals were beaten with clubs or shot to death for their fur. OVER 42% WERE SKINNED ALIVE! The adult males were killed for their penis bones.
Please help us to reach many chefs and restaurants to help boycott Canadian seafood for a short-lived time until the hunt ends and they can purchase fish (such as snow crab) from Alaska. Seafood can be purchased from so many other countries. Please help to save these gentle, beautiful baby seals from extinction and from horrific deaths.
We need your help now because at the end of March, 2006, over 300,000 could die these terrible deaths again.
Here is the News Release from Sir Paul and Heather-Mills McCartney from November 30, 2005:
Sir Paul and Heather McCartney Call on Canadian PM to End Seal Slaughter
November 30, 2005
WASHINGTON ? In a letter to the Canadian Prime Minister released today, Sir Paul McCartney and his wife Heather called for an end to the annual commercial slaughter of hundreds of thousands of harp and hooded seals off Canada's East Coast?the largest kill of marine mammals on earth.
The McCartneys, known for their social activism, expressed dismay that Canada, renowned for its socially progressive values such as the Mine Ban Treaty that the McCartneys are heavily involved with, would promote the cruel hunt. "We simply can't understand why you would allow these beautiful animals to be bludgeoned, clubbed and shot to death simply for their fur," they wrote. "Clearly, there is no scientific basis for this slaughter, as most scientists, including those at the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans, have refuted the claim that killing seals will help the cod stocks to recover."
The seal hunt is an off-season activity conducted by commercial fishermen from Canada's East Coast. Even in Newfoundland, where more than 90 percent of the sealers live, sealing income accounts for less than one percent of that province's gross domestic product and under three percent of the landed value of Newfoundland's fishery.
The Humane Society of the United States has called for a boycott of Canadian seafood until the hunt is canceled. Two thirds of Canadian seafood is exported to the United States, producing $2.8 billion annually for the Canadian economy and making the industry a viable target for a boycott. Dozens of companies, and restaurants, including Legal Sea Foods, Whole Foods and Wild Oats Market have signed the pledge, as well as over 120,000 individuals.
"We wanted to put you on notice that if Canada moves forward with another hunt next year, we will do all we can to focus attention on this unjustified, outdated, and truly horrific practice, including, potentially, visiting the seals on the ice," the McCartneys concluded.
"Sir Paul McCartney and his wife, Heather Mills McCartney are clearly pulling no punches when it comes to defending the seals," said Dr. John Grandy, senior vice president of The HSUS. "We are extremely grateful to them for taking this stand and we hope that the seals will be saved 'with a little help from their friends.'"
For more information on The HSUS seal campaign, please visit www.ProtectSeals.org.
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization representing more than 9.4 million members and constituents. The non-profit organization is a mainstream voice for animals, with active programs in companion animals and equine protection, disaster preparedness and response, wildlife and habitat protection, animals in research and farm animal welfare. The HSUS protects all animals through education, investigation, litigation, legislation, advocacy, and field work. The group is based in Washington and has numerous field representatives across the country. On the web at www.hsus.org.
Karen Allanach 301-548-7778
Please contact us as soon as possible and thank you for your help.
Sincerely,
Sam and Susan Hirsch (CA)
Volunteers for HSUS, Sea Shepherd, Harpseals.org, etc.
(818) 349-6632
Chef2Chef News Desk