Please act quickly to end the cruel hunt for harp and
hooded seals permanently.

The hunt for these seals in Canada is the largest kill of
marine mammals anywhere in the world. More than
307,000 seals were slaughtered in Canada this year - the highest kill
level we have witnessed since 1967. It is absolutely unacceptable to me
that sealers were allowed to exceed the 2002 quota by more than 32,000
animals.

I was appalled to hear that instead of taking steps to address this
situation, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans is actually planning to
increase the 2003 quota to an even higher level. Given that the current
quota is already 18,000 higher than the replacement yield, it is obvious
that the quota should be lowered instead of raised.

Each year at the hunt, routine violations of the Marine Mammal
Regulations are witnessed, including the skinning of live seals,
stockpiling of dead and dying animals, dragging of conscious seals with
sharpened boat hooks, and killing of seals with illegal weapons. I am
aware that video evidence of more than 660 of these violations has been
submitted to the DFO. Outrageously, they have refused to file a single
charge as a result.

In 2001, an international team of veterinarians observed the hunt from
the air and the ground, and performed post-mortems on 73 random seal
carcasses. I am horrified that their report concluded that up to 42% of
the seals they studied had been skinned alive.

It is absolutely unacceptable to me that the federal government of
Canada is encouraging the extermination of a wildlife population that is
beloved by people all over the world.

Repercussions may be felt by Canada in the tourist industry, as well as in other areas. I will certainly not buy any products made from seals.