Nunavut MP slams Liberal senator’s bill to end seal hunt

The Liberals continue to “undermine Canada’s support for the seal hunt and northerners,” Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq said in a May 8 statement.

“While our government stands up for sealers in the face of the misinformation being spread by animal rights extremists around the globe, Senator Mac Harb has re-introduced his bill to put an end to Canada’s seal hunt,” she said.

“The end of the commercial sealing industry is now inevitable,” Harb wrote on his blog “Harb Seal Bill Challenge” .

“It’s time to take the politics out of the debate and simply acknowledge the facts. The Conservative government is ignoring Canadian opposition to the commercial hunt and has turned a deaf ear to the international community and its global boycott of commercial seal hunt products.”

Harb said that’s why he is re-introducing legislation to end the commercial sealing industry in Canada.

“Formally acknowledging the end of this industry will send a clear message to Canadians that we are working towards a viable future for the workers of this region and it will end the costly and economically damaging challenges currently before the WTO [World Trade Organization].”

Aglukkaq said Liberal leader Bob Rae tries to convince people that he’s concerned about food security for aboriginal people and Northerners.

“[But] one of his own caucus is putting forward a bill to end this traditional practice. Rae should show some leadership, and ask Harb to withdraw this Bill. Claims by animal rights organizations and their spokespeople like Mac Harb that shutting down the seal hunt won’t affect Northerners are complete fiction.” 
 
Harb’s bill shows just how out of touch the Liberals are with the North, Aglukkaq said.

“As the regional minister for the North and MP for Nunavut, I will continue to be a vocal advocate for the seal hunt.  It’s too important to our communities, and to our way of life, to let it fall victim to an international smear campaign,” she said.