There is some good news this week for those who oppose the seal hunt (and for the seals themselves of course,) as Euro-MPs voted for a complete European ban on the trade of all seal products.

 

The MPs decided to ban the seal-product trade after public outcry over the yearly slaughter of baby seals in Canada and Norway. The new law will ban the products from the European market, but how it will affect the hunt remains to be seen. However, the decline in seal fur price meant that only 60,000 seals were killed in Canada this year compared to about 220,000 in 2008.

 

It is thought the law will possibly hurt relations between the European Union and Canada and we won’t have to wait long to find out as they are scheduled to meet in Prague to discuss negotiations over a wide-ranging free trade pact.

 

Before the vote, Canada and Norway had warned that they would take the EU to the World Trade Organization to try and overturn the decision if the ban on seal products was put into effect, even though many Canadians are also opposed to the hunt.

 

There still are countries both outside and inside of Europe who support seal hunting, both for environmental and commercial reasons, and the EU felt their pressure. However they believe that the majority of Europeans are against the practice, and acted in response to the common public perception that the hunt is not onlyunnecessary, but cruel.

 

Over 400 MEPs (Ministers of European Parliament ) launched a campaign to ban seal products in 2006 after growing opposition from the public. This prompted a European Commission plan to pass a new law. The law was finally passed this month after an almost unanimous vote of 550-49. It forbids the trade in products derived from seals that are killed for commercial gain. 

Importantly, the small trade of seal products that Inuit people and other indigenous communities depend on for their livelihoods isn’t affected by the legislation, indicating that the law acknowledges that some seal hunting has a cultural value linked to heritage, rather than commerce.

 

The law comes into effect next summer (2010).

 

Seal products were previously outlawed in the U.S. and Mexico, and bans are being introduced in Hong Kong and Russia. In fact, a total of 30 countries have now banned the sale of seal products, and seven of these nations belong to Canada's top 10 export markets.
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Sir Paul McCartney, who has long been very vocal against the hunt, renewed public interest a few weeks ago when he signed a petition and stated that the fate of millions of baby seals was in the hands of MEPs.

 

The International Fund for Animal Welfare said the vote was a historic moment for the organization which has been trying to end the slaughter for about 40 years.