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COMPLAINT REGARDING MINISTER OF DEAT - PUBLIC PROTECTOR

Below is my final letter to the Public Protector. It is hoped with all your tremendous support on the petition and guest book comments, that we can get government to finally answer and address some questions that have been outstanding for years on the management of Cape Fur seals - and get GUNS finally banned from fishing.

Please - keep the support pouring in on the petition and the guest book, at 600 from 30 countries, we are far short in our opposition of the 30 000 fishermen, so please pass this on ! 

Francois Hugo - Seal Alert-SA

PS - Please do sign our guest book and on-line petition.
http://www.canadianvoiceforanimals.org/SASealAlert_index.html
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Rrancois/petition.html
http://www.geocities.com/seal_alert The Cape Fur Seal Power Point show that matches my report to Public Protector is here, under Cape Fur Seals.

http://www.seashepherd.org

http://www.cvfa.iitalia.com

http://www.seals.gen.tr

See also  www.actionagainstpoisoning.com ­ cry for help ­ guns at sea aug05

  <http://www.altarriba.org>   Organización Internacional para la Defensa  de todos los Animale  

Dear Adv. Gary Piennar/Public Protectors Office

I refer to my background report emailed to you on the 18th August 2005. Below is specific answers to your questions or remarks in your earlier email. Please let me know if you need supporting documents, newspaper articles or copies of anything. Francois.

YOUR CRIME ! BEING BORN AT THE TIP OF AFRICA

(1) why you argue that it is unnecessary for fishermen to continue to be allowed to take guns to sea, particularly why you argue that 'close inshore' fishing vessels do not need guns (I think you said there had been no attacks on such fishing vessels in the past 10-15 years, is that correct?); 

1. Under the Constitution, in the Bill of Rights it clearly states, Environment, everyone has the right a) to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being; and b) to have the environment protected, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other measures that ii) promote conservation.
2. Under Common Law, seals are defined as wild animals and are therefore (res nullius), they belong to nobody, either the state or private parties. So what real protection do they have? 
3. In terms of South Africa's Constitution, seals and seabirds as a marine resource (excluded from nature conservation in Schedule 4 Part A) fall within the functional area of national legislative competence. Hence national government will be responsible for determination and development of the policy. (See correspondence in this regard) 
4. Under the South African Animal Protection Act of 1962, it reads, "To consolidate and amend the laws relating to the prevention of cruelty to animals". Under "Animals" means any equine, bovine,sheep, goat, pig, fowl, ostrich, dog, cat, or other domestic animal or bird, or any wild animal, wild bird or reptile which is in the captivity or under control of any person. Under "Owner" in relation to an animal, includes any person having possession, charge, custody or control of that animal. Clearly seals are therefore excluded, as they not even mentioned, nor are wild seals under any ownership or control.
5. Under the Seal Act, it states, "To provide for the control over certain islands and rocks ...and protection" and under definitions it defines "island" means any island or rock specified in Schedule 1. In Schedule 1, a total of 46 islands in southern Africa is listed, and there is no mention anywhere of the mainland or mainland colonies within this act. (However since the independence of Namibia in 1990, only the islands in South Africa would still fall under this Act)
6. There are 22 islands of approximately 900 ha in South Africa. Breeding seals are found on 9 islands which account for 10 ha, or 1%. 
7. Under the Act, upon any island or within the territorial waters or along the coast of South Africa, (which until 1990 include Namibia), between the low-water mark and the high-water mark, No person shall, "Pursue or shoot at or willfully disturb, kill or capture a seal" and since 15th of December 2000 (with the new regulation hurriedly rushed through parliament, after 26-years of this Act, without any public participation, in an attempt to un-constitutional prosecute and arrest, Seal Alert-SA for rescuing seals since 1999), additionally it now became an equal Criminal Offence under the Act, "To be in possession of any seal or part or product thereof at any time, and to feed a seal" without a permit.
8. Under the Sea Birds and Seal Protection Act of 1973. The jurisdiction of the Minister (Delegation issues to still be addressed), his jurisdiction would cover the offshore islands listed under schedule 1 of the Act, and upon which Cape fur seals breed. According to MCM's seal population survey's (sent to you in 2001), this would involve, 9 offshore seal breeding colonies, between Black Rocks - Algoa Bay (east coast) and Elephant Rock near Olifants River/Vanrhynsdorp (west coast).
9. In 1971 - 35 531 pup birth's were recorded for all 9 offshore colonies. Giving a total seal population of 142 124. (South African part of the seal population under the Ministers jurisdiction). In 1997, there was a total of 36 772 pups born. Giving a total seal population under the Minister's jurisdiction according to the Act, after 26- years of Seal conservation and protection, of 147 088. (The only mainland seal colony in South Africa at kleinsee has never been defined in the Act, and falls on private land).
10. Dr Herman Oosthuizen, scientist at MCM,  in reply to a number of my questions, he states "We have appointed a consultant in Australia to collate and verify all pup counts from 1971 up to 2004" and on a request for sealing quota data, "Same consultant is doing an update". In a question by Seal Alert-SA regarding where harvesting is taking place and the humanness of island seal harvesting, the reply "No current harvesting on islands".
11. In a final question, to Dr Oosthuizen. Seal Alert-SA wrote "Can you supply me with the figure for the total land area for all the islands and rocks listed under the Seal Protection Act, in schedule 1, and the total island/rock land area that breeding seals occupy today?", his reply was as follows, "I do not have this information as we have never collected this information".
12. In a debate letter to the Cape Times dated 1st October 2003, written by Deputy Director Horst Kleinschmidt of MCM. It states I quote, "Conservationists agree there is no threat to their existence. On the contrary, the Seal population continues to grow at about 3% per annum".
13. In the 1980's in a book, "Oceans of Life", Dr Jeremy David, head of Seals at MCM, wrote the following, I quote, "and grew at an average rate of about 3.7% per annum from 1971 to 1984".
14. As MCM have claimed 35 531 seal pups were born in 1971, (and as throughout 1971 - 2005, seals are still only found breeding on 9 islands out of 22 in SA or 1% of the total protected island land), at an annual growth of 3%. The Seal population on islands in SA, should have grown after 26-years by a minimum of 78%. In other words, if Mr Kleinschmidt's claims are "correct", and "Cape Fur Seals are under no threat", then in 1997, 62 245 pups should have been born (instead only 36 772 seal pups, a growth after 26-years of just 3% or 0.13% per annum or an actual decline of 41%)
15. In order for the above to have occurred. The surveys reflect that on average 35 000 seal pups were born every year, after 26-years, a total of 910 000 pups were born, and as there has been no growth. Between 900 000 and 1 million protected Cape Fur seals have therefore disappeared.
16. To truly understand the severe loss of seals in South Africa, under natural and normal conditions, with no commercial sealing activities, the Seal's growth should be around 14% per annum (As is being experienced with a similar species in Australia, the Australian fur seals) and not the 3%, as claimed. This would mean that a further 500 000 seals are missing. Bringing the total to unnaturally dying or being illegally killed to 1.5 million over the last 26-years, or about 57 000 a year.
17. I refer to page 27, pt 7.24 of the Commission on Sealing/1990. "The recommendations if adopted, can only be applied to that part of the seal population which falls under the jurisdiction of the South African authorities. There is no evidence that there is more than one seal population in southern Africa, and it is recommended that the Minister gives priority attention to liaison with the relevant authorities in Namibia with a view to the possible implementation of a unified policy for seal management". Therefore, just like the Seal Population knows no borders between South Africa and Namibia, likewise do the fish stocks, in this once most productive fishery in the world.
18. Where have all the pilchards gone? 14-05-2002 MAGGI BARNARD at WALVIS BAY THE zero pilchard quota announced by the Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources has inevitably led to the question of why the resource has declined so vastly. The pilchard catch has dropped from a staggering 1,3 million tons in 1968, 125 000 tons in the early 1990s, 10 000 tons for last year and a first time zero total allowable catch (TAC) announced for the 2002 season. Ten days ago Minister Abraham Iyambo explained that there is no "single or simple answer" to the question, but held one major environmental factor responsible for the decline. Other opinions, such as those offered by Greenpeace, suggest that the decline of fish stocks is often linked to poor management and regulation. There are also those who would argue that the irresponsible and abusive administration of marine resources by the then apartheid South African government, before Independence, should be blamed for the "severe depletion". They go as far as saying the Namibian Government should claim damages in an international court of law. Although this is in Namibia, where the Namibian portion of the seals has dropped 55% in the last decade, with 300 000 currently starving to death each year. There is every reason to believe, something similar could in future threaten the conservation of seals here in South Africa.
19. In the same book, "Oceans of Life", Dr Jeremy David, states the following, "Many fishermen regard seals as 'Public enemy number one', because of a conviction that commercial fish eaten by seals would otherwise be available to the industry"
20. In the Argus Newspaper, dated 19th August 2005, it reads "Some investors are risking up to R32 million in efforts to secure a share of South Africa's long-term fishing quotas, worth R70 billion over the next 15-years 9 000 Applications are expected, yet there are only 3 900 quotas in the entire fishing industry covering 19 different sectors, 30 000 FISHERMEN will soon have 15-year rights to fish."
21. From the Fishing Industry Hand Book. There are 2 884 South African fishing boat licenses in 1995. 2 246 fishing boats or 78% of these boats,  fish within range of Cape Fur Seal breeding colonies in South Africa. Of the total boats, in Hand line fishing (see Hand line Association comments to the Commission), 73% or 1 683 are boats, or better known as ski-boats, are under 8-metres in length. Their range is restricted to I believe 10-nautical miles out to sea.The balance of this hand line sector is trawlers and sports fishing vessels, who have a longer range, but equally interact and kill seals illegally, which number, 627.
22. The other sectors of fishing involved in killing or drowning seals illegally are, Inshore Trawlers 38, Purse Sein Trawlers 73, East and West coast Lobster boats 208,  and squid boats 293.
23. Bringing the total number of fishing boats, fishing within range of 9 Cape fur seal breeding colonies in South Africa to 2858 and whose 2858 fishing skippers and 17 000 to 28 000 fishing crew, who regard seals as "Public enemy number one".
24. There is another fishery, longline fishery and I quote from the Commission report in 1990, "Lines can be up to 20km long, have on average 11 000 hooks which are set in the early evening (The prime foraging time of seals). Lines are left overnight for 10 to 12 hours. Hauling in of lines is a slow process, which may take up to 10 hours. (This fishery because of it's destructive methods, was due to be terminated in 1990, but is still continuing in 2005). Many seals get shot and skippers are known to patrol the top deck as the lines are pulled in, with shot-gun or rifle in hand. The number of boats is unknown, but there are at least 20 in operation.
25. On the 27th August 2001, Seal Alert-SA requested the following information from Dr Jeremy David, (1) Can you supply details of how many seals are illegally killed in South Africa each year? (2) Can you supply details of how many prosecutions or persons were charged for these illegal acts? No reply has ever been received.
26. Likewise on the 30th August 2001, your office sent him a similar letter, with a further 24 questions and requested they be read with my email above. I refer to questions 23 and 24, I quote, "Please provide details of the number of seals reported and estimated killed by the fishing industry, including all copies of all reports submitted to MCM or the Department by commercial fishing interests, during the period 1997 to date" and "Please provide details of the number of seals found on or near South African beaches involving stranded;seals killed by or on behalf of MCM, the SPCA, the SAPS or any other person; seals found dead, from 1 January 1999 to date". No reply has ever been received.
27. In 1990 it was reported to the Minister by the Commission, and I quote "It is estimated that up to 27 000 seals per year die through entanglement in bottom trawls and an unknown number die through similar entanglement in purse-seines". This figure must be remembered can only be attributed to the South African part of the Seal population interacting with the fisheries, and that this is only two sectors of a 19 sector fishing industry. In addition, I quote, "Although illegal, shooting at seals from fishing boats also occurs, resulting in an unknown number of mortalities each year".
28. Professor Patti Wickens is the only person to have researched the South African fishery industry interactions with seals since 1990. Her paper on Trawling in 1992 - 1994, states, I quote, "Over one-third of the total population ranges along the SA coastline, the area considered in this study".(This becomes her first mistake, in that as per the Act, an additional 65% of the one-third should be excluded for two reason, 1) It falls outside the Act and jurisdiction. 2) These seals in northern South Africa, interact very little with SA fishery operations. ( a good example of this is the recent tracking of seals in Namibia). Therefore her findings should have represented this fact, but it did not.  
29. Recent satellite tracking of Males and Cows in Namibia by the IDYLE French group, clearly shows where trawling and Longlining takes place in reference to the closeness of fishing operations to the coast and the foraging range of seals from each particular colony.
30. Her findings after a two-year study, reveal that 2 500 to 3 600 seals get drowned and a further 300 to 600 seals are deliberately killed that are hauled abroad trapped in the netting. Her conclusion is that 2 800 to 4 200, is and I quote, "this is negligible (0.4 - 0.6%) in terms of the feeding population of seals in South Africa. This becomes her second mistake.
31. She defines her study area further in SA, as "west" and "south" coasts (South - east of Cape Agulhas), and I quote, "all fishing effort by inshore trawlers is concentrated on the south coast". (In this region there is only two breeding seal colonies, which in 1994, recorded 1 252 pups or 5 008 seals). Her paper goes on further to say, "interactions result in little cost to the offshore and midwater trawl fisheries. For the inshore trawl fishery, there is an estimated cost of R69 728 or (0.3%), but states this is a negligible cost to the industry". During the IFAW seal workshop in 2003, Dr Jeremy David presented Wickens findings as per her request. He stated and I quote, "Inshore trawl sector....... about a 1000 seals drown . amounting to 0.2% of the population. This however is not quite correct, for there are only 5 008 seals in this region as per (1994), a 1000 being drowned, is a massive loss of 20% to this regions population of seals. To understand how severe, see below.
32. In 1999, Dr Carolyn Stewardson did a paper specifically on the "south" coast seal population referred to in Wickens paper and study area. I quote, "Cape Fur Seals inhabited 6 islands in Algoa Bay and 2 in Plettenberg. At present, Black Rocks support 700 seals. In the last 12 years the population has decreased by 82%. .... by confining the population to Black Rocks, the population is unable to build up its numbers sufficiently to stimulate colonisation of neighbouring islands. Limited space for breeding seals on Black Rocks and the influence of storms, restricts the number of pups that can be reared successfully. The effect of man on the Seal, Stag and Black Rocks population is therefore a permanent one".
33. In the IFAW seal workshop in 2003, Dr Greg Hofmeyer of the depart of Marine Mammals in Pretoria, stated and I quote, "unlike seals, seabirds are a conservation problem (which seabirds ?, all the seabirds or just anyone of 17 seabirds that might decide to start breeding on islands), and the two cannot co-exist". I have never heard of such gross mismanagement in my life.

1. The question therefore, should Professor Wickens be comparing the 4 200 seals killed by the fisheries (excluding the unknown number shot illegally) for the whole fisheries, to the whole South African seal population, or just those 9 offshore colonies listed under the Act, or the 36 000 pups or 144 000 seals found in this consider region stretching from Black Rocks Algoa Bay to Elephant Rock near Vanrhynsdorp. If you agree with me, according to the Act, then 4 200 seals being killed by fisheries out of 144 000 seals, is a considerable concern, because at (2.9%), this loss is almost equal to the growth claimed by MCM of 3% per annum, or as I have pointed out is actually only 0.13%. If this is in fact, a true reflection, fisheries in SA are in fact threatening the survival and conservation of Cape Fur Seals in South Africa.
2. Professor Wickens findings of only 4 200 seals drowned or killed by the whole fishery industry in South Africa alone, falls far short of the 27 000 seals described in the Commission report in 1990, for just one sector out of 19 fishing sectors. The question has to be raised, can any announced research of the illegal killing of seals by the industry, be possible. When for example, everyone from Fishermen to the Minister confirms seals are being shot, and who some describe as an "illegal war" on seals, yet Professor Wickens could not present one scientific findings of these numbers.
3. I quote from the Commission, "Many of the purse-seine boats have fire-arms on board and hundreds, if not thousands of seals are shot each year", and "in the hand line fishery (with hand line boats accounting for 73% of all the boats), the fishermen also shoot seals, thereby causing serious danger (the gun shots are so frequent and random) to nearby boats when the fleet is concentrated".
4. To date, all research undertaken appears to have only focused on the loss to the industry, and no thought of the loss to the species of seal and it's survival, as protected under the constitution.
5. Professor Wickens also undertook research with the line fishing industry, and this is what her conclusions were, I quote, "Deliberate killing of seals by fishermen during line-fishing occurs indiscriminately and particular during peak snoek fishing period, however, estimates of this (illegal and criminal) mortality is currently impossible".
6. Is this acceptable? Marine scientists can even tell us how deep a wild seal dives, what fish is in it's stomach and how far it swims in our vast 4000 km coast line, but cannot produce any research on how many seals are being illegally killed, clearly this is unacceptable.

AS I HAVE NO MOM - YOUR EAR WILL HAVE TO SERVE AS MY NIPPLE - POPEYE

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