Seal hunt in Namibia

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Seal colony at Cape Cross

The seal hunt in Namibia is - controversial - hunting on South African fur seals in the South West African Namibia . Every year up to 100,000 seals are hunted in the Cape Cross seal reserve , as well as in the Wolf and Atlas Bay .

history

The history of the commercial use of seals goes back to 1884 during the times of German South West Africa . The German Colonial Society had the monopoly at that time . This used the holdings at the Cape Cross as well as rights of use on twelve islands that were leased from the Cape Colony .

In 1922 there was the first legislation on the use of fur seals. In 1927 the rights of use were given to Herman Offen for the Cape Cross and Judel Lurie for the offshore islands. New legislation in 1949 made the illegal killing of seals a fine. In 1973, the use was further regulated by law and, among other things, the size, sex and age of the animals were taken into account. After independence in 1990, Namibia regulated its use in its own law from 1991.

In 2012, the Namibian ombudsman declared the use of the fur seals in its former form to be partially illegal.

background

The seal population in Namibia is considered stable and growing rapidly. In 2012 it was given as 1.3 million animals, but is possibly also up to 3 million (as of 2011).

The state issues quotas for use through the Ministry of Fisheries , which can take place from July 1st to November 15th. For the years 2010 to 2012 this was 86,000 animals per year. According to this, the sustainable use of the Cape fur seals on the Namibian coast is not only important for the gross domestic product, but also guarantees an income for numerous people. From 2016 to 2018, 68,000 seals were released for hunting annually. There are always around 90 young animals and 10 percent adult bulls.

In Namibia explicitly by the state regarding seal of harvest ( English harvest ) and not hunting or English culling spoken. In German-speaking usage in Namibia one mostly speaks of beating . The harvest is carried out by shooting the adult animals and bludgeoning the young animals. A Hakapik is not used in Namibia.

economy

According to the Namibian state, seals are used for two main reasons. On the one hand, the extremely rich fishing grounds are to be secured for fishing in Namibia . On the other hand, the products of the fur seals represent an important economic basis. All parts of the killed animals are used and FDI is generated, among others by the Hatem Yavuz Group , which specializes in the export of seal skins .

Between 2005 and 2015 Namibia exported 400,000 skins alone. In 2018 a factory for processing seals opened in Lüderitz .

Usage figures (selection)

year Sinclair Island Albatross rock North Long Island / South Long Island Wolf / Atlas Bay Luderitz Islands Hollamsbird Island Cape of cross
1902 530 1913
1912 1512 1 1512 1 1512 1 1512 1
1922 8234 1 8234 1 8234 1 8234 1
1932
1942 7664 1 7664 1 7664 1 3900
1952 1642 1078 2070 16,707 28 5871
1962 5008 1436 2042 21,396 8236
1972 2233 126 2048 42,227 7470
1982 3544 1504 5564 42,775 12,075
Source:

1 joint survey of the areas

International mood

The seal hunt is controversial internationally . Various animal welfare organizations campaign against hunting and, above all, the type of killing. There have also been calls for boycotts in the past .

In 2009, for example, the European Union banned the import of seal products. This decision was described as discriminatory by the World Trade Organization five years later . Even before that time, Namibia's export of seal products did not go to the EU, but mainly to Asia, so that the decision had little impact on Namibia and the country waived an official objection.

literature

  • John Walters: Report on the Complaints by Civil Society Organizations, Non Governmental Organizations, Individuals and other Groups on the Illegalities Pertaining to the Annual Seal Harvest in Namibia. , Office of the Ombudsman , 2012. ( PDF )
  • Roderick Campbell, Tristan Knowles, Simon O'Connor: The economics of seal hunting and seal watching in Namibia , Economists at Large, Melbourne 2011. ([The economics of seal hunting and seal watching in Namibia campbell PDF])

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Report on the Complaints by Civil Society Organizations, Non Governmental Organizations, Individuals and other Groups on the Illegalities Pertaining to the Annual Seal Harvest in Namibia. Ombudsman , 2012. (PDF)
  2. ↑ 2019 Annual Ministerial Address to the Fishing Industry. Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, February 15, 2019.
  3. ↑ Annual Namibia seal cull to start amid protests. The Namibian, July 16, 2012 ( memento of February 21, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ) accessed on July 16, 2012
  4. ↑ In defense of seal culling , Die Republikein , March 23, 2011.
  5. ^ Quota set for seals, Allgemeine Zeitung, July 7, 2010 ( Memento of February 22, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  6. ↑ Seal quota renewed for three years. Allgemeine Zeitung, July 11, 2016 ( Memento from July 11, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  7. ↑ Season of seals - a 'harvest', not a cull. The Namibian, July 18, 2019.
  8. ↑ Sealing defended. Allgemeine Zeitung, July 12, 2006.
  9. ↑ John Harwood: Competition between seals and fisheries . In: Science Progress (1933-) . 71, No. 3 (283), 1987, ISSN  0036-8504 , pp. 429-437.
  10. ^ Cape Fur Seal Trade Remains Shrouded in Secrecy. National geographic, September 21, 2016.
  11. ^ Cape Fur Seal Trade Remains Shrouded in Secrecy . September 21, 2016. Accessed June 12, 2019.
  12. ↑ N $ 17m seal processing factory opens in Lüderitz. New Era, 2018. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  13. ↑ Namibia will not submit to EU ban on seal harvest: Esau. Lela Mobile, April 19, 2015.