International Day of Action for the Seals, or Squirrel Day, is celebrated annually on March 15 in many countries around the world; it was established on the initiative of the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).
Squirrels – harp seal pups – have been hunted for many decades, primarily because of their beautiful fur. It is the demand for this fur, most often dictated by fashion trends rather than urgent necessity, that pushes a person to destroy these animals in huge quantities. Not so long ago it could be legally sold in Europe, Russia, China and many other countries.
Greenland seals are found in the North Atlantic, White, Barents, Kara and Greenland Seas. Eleven months the seal bears the cub, and in the spring adult females and males climb onto the ice from the sea for several weeks so that their offspring – charming and defenseless squirrels appear there.
About two weeks after birth, while the female feeds with milk, the belka fur remains snow-white. It is because of this fur that tens of thousands of squirrels die every year, and their murder occurs very cruelly: they are beaten to death with iron clubs. In terms of cruelty, barbarism and the number of murders, this fishery has no equal. And by the end of the 20th century, commercial hunting of harp seal pups brought this animal species to the brink of extinction.
One of the first to oppose the extermination of squirrels was the International Fund for Animal Welfare IFAW, which attracted wide public attention to this problem. More and more people joined the defenders, who could not be indifferent to barbaric and senseless fishing. Every year in March, thousands of demonstrations and pickets were organized around the world.
The murder is happening very cruelly... (Photo: Vladimir Melnik, licensed from Shutterstock.com)
Thanks to this active activity, the authorities of many countries around the world were forced to take economic measures that made fishing for squirrels unprofitable. And starting in 1986, the import and sale of squirrel fur in the USA, Mexico and European countries was completely prohibited. Today in the European Union countries it is even considered a sign of bad taste to appear in public places in outerwear made from squirrel fur.
Despite all this, in Russia only in 2009, through the efforts of the public and international environmental organizations, the Government of the Russian Federation introduced a ban on hunting squirrels. This happened, thanks, among other things, to the participation of – artists, musicians, directors, academicians, journalists, and athletes in the protest of Russian celebrities…
However, even today the squirrel fishery continues – such mass and inhumane killing of seal pups is not prohibited in Canada and Norway. But the world community continues to fight. In August 2010, the EU introduced a ban on trade in all types of seal products, making it illegal to trade in any seal products from all commercial landings. IFAW expects that this will put an end to seal fishing in these countries too.
On March 15, various actions, demonstrations and pickets against the killing of squirrels are taking place in many countries. The Russian public and numerous environmental organizations are holding all kinds of events throughout the country in defense of these animals and in order to attract public attention to the problem of – exhibitions of children's drawings, photo exhibitions, demonstrations, flash mobs, etc.