The
Honourable Céline Hervieux-Payette, P.C.
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
FOR
IMMEDIATE PUBLICATION
Senator
Céline Hervieux-Payette defends the
sustainable harvesting of seals
OTTAWA,
March 15, 2007 - "Pictures
of whitecoats have become weapons of mass disinformation".
Speaking at a press conference launching a counter-protest
by supporters of sustainable seal harvest in Canada, Senator Céline
Hervieux-Payette, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate,
condemned the use of rhetoric by manipulative, profit-oriented
lobby groups. She warned these groups to be careful not
to use pictures of whitecoats in their publications and
on their websites because hunting of baby harp seals has
been banned in Canada since 1987.
Senator Hervieux-Payette also called to task the European
parliamentarians who are threatening to ban the import of
all seal-derived products: The Senator asked, “Do
we want to raise seals like Europeans raise deer, ostrich
and wild board, before it becomes more acceptable?”
Senator Hervieux-Payette reiterated that Canada is a
signatory to the United Nations Convention on Biological
Diversity and has the same concern for the environment as
do all peoples who have been able to integrate finite natural
resources into their development.
The seal population has tripled in the past thirty years.
The UN Convention on Biological Diversity recognizes that
countries have a sovereign right to harvest their resources
in accordance with their environmental policy. Senator Hervieux-Payette
asked whether we should be requesting “international
supervision of [the] herds and an examination of the butchering
techniques used in [the] slaughterhouses.”
Lastly, Senator Hervieux-Payette expressed her support
for those who have been unfairly accused of “animal
genocide”, saying that the lies and misinformation
humiliate men and women, mothers and fathers, who are eminently
respectable.” They are engaging in economic activities
that are perfectly legal. “The desire to raise children
in decent surroundings” has never been “a
crime against humanity,” she added.
Maximilien
Depontailler
Policy Advisor
Office of the Honourable Céline Hervieux-Payette,
P.C.
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
613-947-8008
deponm@sen.parl.gc.ca
