At HSUS headquarters
The rain is pouring down as we arrive in Charlottetown in a small propeller plane. This does not bode well. If the weather is too bad then the helicopters will be unable to take off in the morning when the hunt begins. Bad and stormy weather can also change the ice conditions and break it up even further than it is already making it difficult to land. It has become increasingly warmer here during the last week and the ice is melting fast.
As I arrive at the HSUS headquarters I am given a hearty welcome by my international colleagues. They are so pleased that we've made it out here to the back of beyond and that Bont voor Dieren is doing all that it can to pressurise the Canadian government to put an end to this atrocity for once and for all. The hotel where they are based is a hive of activity. All sorts of people are wandering around here - activists, photographers, film crews, journalists and helicopter pilots. There's an amazing atmosphere of camaraderie here. We all gather round a TV to watch the documentary 'Seal Wars', which Rebecca Aldworth - veteran of many seal campaigns and main organising force behind this seal watch - says should help us put what we a shortly to see in a clear historical context. It also gives us a taster of the horrific things that we are about to see for real.
The images of the protests during the 1970s are particularly impressive. We see people blocking the paths of sealing boats, which tower behind them. We see Paul Watson, formerly of Greenpeace now of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, handcuffing himself to the winch that was being used to haul pelts on board. Watson is the topic of conversation of the day. He is planning to be in the Gulf of St. Lawrence tomorrow morning when the hunt starts at 6 am. He doesn't have a permit to be there, so he and his large crew will all be arrested. That'll be a great publicity stunt. I'm curious how it'll all turn out!
The HSUS is planning to be there to film the action. However, they can only take off once it is light and won't arrive in the neighbourhood until just before 7am. That is if they are able to take off at all. We're due to fly out to the ice this afternoon along with a film crew to record some interview material. They want me to talk about the results of our survey research and opposition to the hunt in the Netherlands. I hope that I have some voice left to do so, it's been disappearing into croak during the last 24 hours!
First we are going to have to get our permits sorted out. We have to promise the DFO that we are going to behave ourselves while we're out there. Once we have the permits sorted, we can get out to the ice and see the horrors of the seal hunt with our very own eyes. Can't say that I'm looking forward to it, but it is all very exciting. It seems so surreal to be here and to know that within about 12 hours I shall bear witness to the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of innocent seals.
As I arrive at the HSUS headquarters I am given a hearty welcome by my international colleagues. They are so pleased that we've made it out here to the back of beyond and that Bont voor Dieren is doing all that it can to pressurise the Canadian government to put an end to this atrocity for once and for all. The hotel where they are based is a hive of activity. All sorts of people are wandering around here - activists, photographers, film crews, journalists and helicopter pilots. There's an amazing atmosphere of camaraderie here. We all gather round a TV to watch the documentary 'Seal Wars', which Rebecca Aldworth - veteran of many seal campaigns and main organising force behind this seal watch - says should help us put what we a shortly to see in a clear historical context. It also gives us a taster of the horrific things that we are about to see for real.
The images of the protests during the 1970s are particularly impressive. We see people blocking the paths of sealing boats, which tower behind them. We see Paul Watson, formerly of Greenpeace now of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, handcuffing himself to the winch that was being used to haul pelts on board. Watson is the topic of conversation of the day. He is planning to be in the Gulf of St. Lawrence tomorrow morning when the hunt starts at 6 am. He doesn't have a permit to be there, so he and his large crew will all be arrested. That'll be a great publicity stunt. I'm curious how it'll all turn out!
The HSUS is planning to be there to film the action. However, they can only take off once it is light and won't arrive in the neighbourhood until just before 7am. That is if they are able to take off at all. We're due to fly out to the ice this afternoon along with a film crew to record some interview material. They want me to talk about the results of our survey research and opposition to the hunt in the Netherlands. I hope that I have some voice left to do so, it's been disappearing into croak during the last 24 hours!
First we are going to have to get our permits sorted out. We have to promise the DFO that we are going to behave ourselves while we're out there. Once we have the permits sorted, we can get out to the ice and see the horrors of the seal hunt with our very own eyes. Can't say that I'm looking forward to it, but it is all very exciting. It seems so surreal to be here and to know that within about 12 hours I shall bear witness to the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of innocent seals.
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