Posted on 10 December 2009
OTTAWA, December 10th, 2009 - "We must not add contempt to cynicism," said Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette to summarize her demand to the Conservative government to intervene on behalf of sealers, who face a cynical and unfair European boycott of seal products.
In a study published in April 2009, Professor of Economics John Livernois estimated the revenues of sealers to be 15.4 million for 2005 hunting season. 2005 was a good year but was not exceptional and was the last year before vegetarian groups led their final offensive in Europe. "I believe that as long as we have to fight against this unjust boycott, the income sealers received in 2005 from the hunt should be insured by the Government of Canada," said Senator Hervieux-Payette who thinks that aid in developing new markets for seal products would decrease funding.
The Senator is also concerned about the Inuit: "the price of sealskins in Nunavut has dropped dramatically in the last year from $ 70 to $ 25 which proves that the exemption of Inuit consumption products from the European boycott is an additional aberration."
Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette urges all governments to promote and study the application of the Universal Declaration on the Ethical Harvest of Seals (www.sealsonline.com) written by a panel of experts and scientists from Canada and the United States. To this day, the government of Québec, the government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the international organization for animal conservation IWMC World Conservation Trust based in Switzerland have officially supported the Declaration.
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Maximilien Depontailler
Conseiller politique
Bureau de l’honorable Céline Hervieux-Payette, c.p.
613-947-8008 - deponm@sen.parl.gc.ca