Depressing to say the least!

"Francois Hugo questions why the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)
South African director of operations, Jason Bell, has not got back him to
regarding IFAW's decision to assist in the buyout or not. Francois Hugo is sure
the Namibian Sealing Industry would accept $1,4 million as a down payment to
secure the buyout. When considering IFAW spent a bequest of $10 million on
building their new head office, and had $25 million dollar income from donations
last year, plus a further $41 million in assets or cash in bank and 3 million
supporting members."

----- Original Message -----
From: Seal Alert-SA<mailto:sasealion@...>
To: List
Sent: Saturday, July 11, 2009 5:36 PM
Subject: Namibian Seals Assist Seal Alert-SA and Hide Out North, With
Australian/Namibian Sealing Industry 'Hot On Their Trail',


Seal Alert-SA, Media Release 12 July 2009,
Day 12, and Francois Hugo of Seal Alert-SA still manages to stop any baby seal
pups being clubbed, shutting down and thwarting govt's attempt to cull seal pups
for the first time in sealing history.
Namibian Seals Assist Seal Alert-SA and Hide Out North,
With Australian/Namibian Sealing Industry 'Hot On Their Trail',
With Govt Approval


Sealers tyre-tracks is all that remains at Namibia's largest seal colony (Cape
Cross 2007)

Please watch this 4min, BBC Wildlife short clip on the seal pups at Cape Frio in
Namibia.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fwu6TW-DYY<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fwu6T\
W-DYY>

After speaking telephonically to Hatem Yavuz today, where Hatem again
confirmed that no seal pups have been killed this season, Francois Hugo of Seal
Alert-SA is not so sure.

When the first seal pup population survey was undertaken in 1972, Namibia
had 13 seal colonies. With 4 of these seal colonies remaining on the recently
protected 11 offshore islands along the Namibian 1650 km coastline.

The Namibian govt has since 1990. Awarded the Namibian sealing industry
sealing rights and pup and bull quotas for two seal colonies. Both of which
occur on the mainland unnaturally. Wolf/Atlas Bay in the south, in the De Beers
diamond mining restricted area, known as the 'spirregebiet' and the other Cape
Cross, Namibia largest seal colony. The reason for this was simple. In the peak
of the population in 1993, these two seal colonies produced 75 percent of the
seal pups born in Namibia.

Each mainland seal colony developed as the seals attempted to flee the
sealing and disturbance taking place in their original habitat - offshore
islands. With the majority are all now extinct and banned. As a result of this
disturbance. 8 new seal colonies formed with these fleeing seal refugees.

Following Francois Hugo's meeting with the Prime Minister in July 2007,
where after he later exposed that just 20 - 40 days into 139 day sealing season.
Sealers had completely collapsed the largest seal colony with the largest quota
on record - Cape Cross. Killing, exterminating or causing every last seal to
abandon the colony (see pic above).

Causing escaping and surviving seals to flee once again.

The Namibian Ministry of Fisheries itself confessed in its meeting with
Seal Alert in 2007. That at least a further 11 'refugee seal colonies' had
developed in 2006 seal pup production season alone. The reason. Sealing pup
quotas increasing ten-fold, from 9000 to 85 000 pups, on the existing colonies
since independence in 1990.

The largest, and fastest growing 'seal refugee colony' at Cape Frio near
the Angolan border. In 2006, its pup production accounted for 10 percent of
Namibia's seal population, having only developed in 1995. To escape Namibia's
sealing policy completely, 21 000 fleeing seals have colonised an island in
Angola, for the first time in the history of this species.

The person driving this endangered seal species extinction and refugee
sealing fleeing status - Australian luxury seal fur jacket maker based in
Turkey.

Since Hatem Yavuz invested in the Namibian sealing industry several years
ago taking control of it. He has persuaded the Namibian govt to treble the pup
quota from 30 000 pups to 85 000, to feed his luxury goods business in Turkey.

Persuading even the Namibian govt to ignore the largest mass die-off of
marine mammals ever recorded on the planet, in the 2006 seal mass die-off from
starvation, due to commercial overfishing and increase the pup quota a further
30 percent.

Whilst Francois Hugo has made an offer to Hatem Yavuz and is in discussions
to buy up the sealing rights and quota of the seals in the south, for this year.
In an effort to save them from being beaten to death in the cruelest way.
Situated in the De Beers diamond restricted area, of Wolf and Atlas Bay. Using
his own funds, in the hope that he can secure a written commitment that none of
these seals will be killed this season.

Hopefully buying him additional time as well, to raise sufficient pledges
to buy out the whole Namibian sealing industry for $14 million, before its too
late.

The Seals are increasingly hiding out towards the north. Helping to buy
time, so Seal Alert-SA can raise the funding for the buyout. Each day won, is a
life-time to each of the 85 000 pups.

The latest info is that the sealers are hot on the seal pups trail. With
govt approval, following the collapse of Cape Cross seal colony in 2007. Moved
their seal pup clubbing activities to all the seal colonies, starting in the
north, and slowly moving down south when the media attention wanes.

Although I hear, Cape Cross luxury lodge is full at present, with media
awaiting the slaughter at Cape Cross to capture footage never before revealed to
the public. The sealers have apparently secretly begun seal pup clubbing
operations in the far remote northern area of Namibia to escape the eye of the
media and public.

This NEW development clearly means one thing. The Namibian govt has now
thrown out all so-called scientific utilization of the seals as a resource and
conservation sealing quotas based on each colony, and replaced it with "Kill,
Kill Kill, Mr Hatem Yavuz - how many luxury seal pup skins do you need for your
Turkey operation, Sir Australia".

When govt increased the pup quota from 60 000 to 85 000 pups in 2006, and
then admitted the world largest mass die-off was also taking place. Minister of
Fisheries Abraham Iyambo described the increase in pup quota, "minimal". With
Hatem's Namibian sealers now given access to all the seal colonies in Namibia,
and perhaps Angola as well, one can only wonder what Iyambo consider a 'maximum'
seal pup quota.

Francois Hugo questions why the International Fund for Animal Welfare
(IFAW) South African director of operations, Jason Bell, has not got back him to
regarding IFAW's decision to assist in the buyout or not. Francois Hugo is sure
the Namibian Sealing Industry would accept $1,4 million as a down payment to
secure the buyout. When considering IFAW spent a bequest of $10 million on
building their new head office, and had $25 million dollar income from donations
last year, plus a further $41 million in assets or cash in bank and 3 million
supporting members.

It does not seem appropriate that IFAW stands by doing nothing. Whilst the
world's largest seal cull hangs by a thread. A thread a single individual is
holding tightly. The largest cull of endangered seals, the last nursing seal
pup cull in the world and the largest slaughter of wildlife in Africa and the
first seal hunt, following the EU Seal import ban in May, is about to begin or
begun.

Depending on who you support and believe.

IFAW needs to clarify its statement to a supporter of the buyout it made 9
days into the 2009 sealing season (see below).


For the Seals
Francois Hugo Seal Alert-SA
27-21-790 8774
http://sealalertsa.wordpress.com/<http://sealalertsa.wordpress.com/>




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