Analysis shows Canada's Commercial seal hunt gets a failing grade from EU

The report, produced by the International Fund for Animal Welfare, found that Canada’s commercial seal hunt currently does not comply with at least 7 of the 10 criteria outlined in the European Commission’s proposed legislation.
 
“Canada’s commercial seal hunt does not begin to meet the European requirements on paper, let alone in practice” said Sheryl Fink, Senior IFAW researcher and author of the report. 
 
“The current Marine Mammal Regulations and Conditions of License simply do not hold up to the standards of humane killing outlined yesterday. For example, as long as Canada continues to ignore the recommendations of veterinarians by allowing the shooting of seals in the water, this hunt cannot possibly satisfy the EU criteria.”
 
The analysis is in stark contrast to a statement made Wednesday by Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn, who claimed that Canada had successfully secured exemption from the proposed ban.
 
“Unless the Minister is admitting to some secretive backdoor deal-making, I don’t see how this could possibly be true” said Fink.
 
 “Even if the regulations were completely rewritten, the past 35 years have shown that Canada’s commercial seal hunt would still not meet humane standards, because of the government’s inability to enforce the regulations.”
 
“A commercial seal hunt on such a massive scale, in an unpredictable and unstable environment, and in the absence of adequate enforcement and compliance, is inherently inhumane.  No amount of political posturing or pencil pushing is going to change that.”
 
The complete report is available at www.ifaw.ca