Canada's Kill Fields

THE blood on the ice floes off the Atlantic may have washed away, but government has given the green light for the slaughter to start again.

- Vanessa Papas

IN a few days’ time the largest slaughter of marine mammals on Earth will see hundreds of thousands of seals clubbed and shot to death for their fur, many of them just babies under the age of three months.

Although seal hunting does take place all year round in Canada, this upcoming two-month period from March to May sees a huge spike in seals killed around the Magdalen Islands and Prince Edward Island, and off the east coast of Newfoundland. Sealers and animal welfare groups have been locked in fierce disagreement over the economic and ethical merits of the seal hunt for decades. High-profile international stars such as Sarah McLachlan, Pamela Anderson, Sir Paul McCartney, Leonardo DiCaprio, Gwen Stefani, Adrien Brody and Brigitte Bardot have called for the end to the hunt, along with countless others who have added their voice to the plight of these seals. Those in favour of the hunt, however, argue that animals are killed for their meat and skins all the time and that the same kind of thing happens in slaughterhouses every day away from prying eyes. What then, makes this hunt any different?

In 2015, almost half a million seals were killed, with a legal quota given to hunters of 468 000. Last year a similar number was recorded. This year, the quota has yet to be made public.