MOSCOW, March 18 (RIA Novosti) - Russia introduced on
Wednesday a complete ban on the hunting of harp seal cubs, the
Natural Resources Ministry said.
The ban was imposed by the Russian Federal Fisheries
Agency. The documentation has been sent for state registration
with the Ministry of Justice.
"The bloody type of seal hunting, the killing of
defenseless animals that can't even be called 'hunting' is
banned in Russia just as it is in most developed countries,
it's a serious step forward to the preservation of
bio-diversity in the Russian Federation," Natural Resources
Minister Yury Trutnev said.
He said environmental organizations had played a major
role in the ban being adopted through their pro-active position
and their educational and public awareness campaigns.
Environmentalists said they were happy with the decision.
"We are delighted at the adoption of this decision and
would like to separately underline the important role played by
the Russian Natural Resources Ministry in this cause. Thanks to
their efforts this has finally taken place. Being a state
structure, it greatly influenced the advancement of this
process," International Fund for Animal Welfare's Anna
Filippova said.
She added that anti-hunting demonstrations, which had been
held in 25 Russian cities and abroad, had also helped people
gain greater understanding of the issues involved in seal
hunting.
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