Help Sitemap Home Skip Navigation Contact Us Disability Statement


Canadian governor general eats raw seal heart in EU hunt ban stunt

Premium Article !

Your account has been frozen. For your available options click the below button.

Options

Premium Article !

To read this article in full you must have registered and have a Premium Content Subscription with the The Scotsman site.

Subscribe

Registered Article !

To read this article in full you must be registered with the site.

Sign In
Register
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image

Published Date: 27 May 2009
CANADA'S governor general has eaten a slaughtered seal's raw heart in a show of support for the country's seal hunters, a display that a European Union spokeswoman yesterday called "too bizarre to acknowledge".

Michaelle Jean, the representative of Queen Elizabeth II as Canada's head of state, gutted the seal and swallowed a slice of the mammal's heart late on Monday after an EU vote earlier this month banning seal products on grounds that the seal hunt is cruel.

Asked on Tuesday whether her actions were a message to Europe, Ms Jean replied: "Take from that what you will."

Hundreds of Inuit at a community festival gathered as Ms Jean knelt above a pair of seal carcasses and used a traditional blade to slice the meat. After cutting through the flesh, Ms Jean turned to the woman beside her and asked: "Could I try the heart?"

After swallowing a piece and deeming it tasty, Ms Jean, whose post is largely ceremonial, defended the hunt as a traditional practice that is not inhumane.

A spokeswoman for EU environment commissioner Stavros Dimas offered no official reaction.

"It's too bizarre to acknowledge," Barbara Helfferich said.

EU governments are to sign the ban into law on 25 June after the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly to impose the measure.





The full article contains 225 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 26 May 2009 9:54 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

2dogs in D.C.,

27/05/2009 00:51:36
Um,Um.Raw clubbed baby seal heart.Do I see a future McDonalds "Happy Meal"in the works?
2

Tom in Belmont,

Belmont 27/05/2009 02:18:09
My uncle, a deer hunter, always insisted on cooking and eating the heart first, arguing that a tender heart meant tender venison. I say good for the GG and hard cheese to the Euro-weenies!
3

,

27/05/2009 03:17:56
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
4

Cassarena,

Canada 27/05/2009 05:39:32
Canada's GG is a very elegant and gracious lady. As a Scot, raw seal is not something I've got the stomach for. But as a Canadian-to-be, I recogise the cultural sensitivity, respect and honour her actions demonstrated. Every nation has a culture that reflects its people, its past and its geography. Surviving in the Arctic necessitates food choices that we might find difficult to swallow. Many say the same about our haggis, meat pies, Irn Bru and blood pudding. This fuss over the seal hunt is media hype and posturing by an ineffective political body that would never have the guts to tackle seal hunting by European nations, or many of the awful animal farming practices subsidised by Euro funding across the continent.
5

,

27/05/2009 06:35:06
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
6

,

27/05/2009 07:18:39
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
7

Ken26,

Toronto, Canada 27/05/2009 12:36:18
The Governor General did what she did in support of the Inuit people, whose way of life in now being threatened by the EU's ban on the import of Canadian seal pelts. Even though the EU exempted pelts harvested by the Inuit, we all know that importers in the EU will in all likelihood avoid even Inuit sourced pelts in case they are viewed by consumers or legislators as being in violation of the ban.

For all you bleeding hearts out there, the Canadian seal hunt is no less humane than the practice of factory farming of animals and poultry. You all like your steaks, burgers and Christmas turkeys but turn a blind eye to how they have gotten to your dinner plates. The only difference is that factory farming takes place behind closed doors and you can't see what goes on. However, because Paul McCartney and his equally idiotic ex-wife lie on an ice floe and pontificate about the "cute" seals, everyone goes all mushy. I hope you are all as equally concerned about all the fishermen in your communities who, having once caught a fish, then club it over head to make sure it is dead.
8

Carolyn 1,

Boston, Massachusetts 27/05/2009 13:21:10
Good comment at #7

this is not unlike Sarah Palin being an Alaskan, to the great displeasure of the rest of the world.
Gasp! Shock! The Horror! A vulgarian frontierswoman who hunts wolves!!

I wonder if the animal activists who campaigned against Palin will start one vs. Jean?
9

,

27/05/2009 14:31:03
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
10

,

27/05/2009 15:07:13
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
11

WL,

Livingston 27/05/2009 15:17:46
#1
Where does the article say that the heart was that of a "clubbed baby seal"? Don't invent things.
I agree that CRUEL killing of animals (not only seals) should be banned - but most hunting is not cruel.
12

,

27/05/2009 17:30:35
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
13

sandy,

USA 27/05/2009 21:53:48
#7 Ken26

May I add the not so humane way the French get their delicacy foie gras?...

14

Douglas,

Bathgate 28/05/2009 00:00:23
Carolyn1 #8: "this is not unlike Sarah Palin being an Alaskan, to the great displeasure of the rest of the world.
Gasp! Shock! The Horror! A vulgarian frontierswoman who hunts wolves!!"

You forgot to add that she is an idiot.
15

Somerville,

Resolute Bay Nunavut 28/05/2009 02:20:15
Let me say this: I live and teach in a small communtity in the High Arctic of Canada. Inuit hunt seal to survive; it's a daily occurrence in Resolute. Nothing to do with the commercial seal hunt that persists off the east coast of Canada. It is also common to be offered a raw selection of foods from land and sea mammals. Inuit sushi, if you like. We regularly have feasts and Kabloonaks (white Southerners), like myself, are invited to share in their culture by sharing their food. The Governor General is truly a gracious lady. As a matter of fact, she was in our school today attending an elders' tea. It is patently obvious that she ate the chunk of raw seal heart, as a way of truly engaging in the Northern experience. It was a way of reaching out to the People of the Land; a way of saying I want to learn more about the way you live, your customs and traditions. You need to be here to see the way it is. She was NOT making a political statement! PS. I made her a blueberry/apple crumble which she also ate and enjoyed. It was a Scottish recipe.
16

,

28/05/2009 02:31:28
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
17

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 02:54:45
@13
Palin as governor of Alaska is similar to the Canadian Govornor General, both are responsible to the people they govern. Both Canada and Alaska have Inuit populations who hunt for food.

That native tribes in our untouched regions of the world still hunt for food, is the last page turning in a very old book that will soon vanish from the planet. They are all we have of a 'frontier'. Let them live their life in peace without our interference and our version of 'culture.'

As I recall, you said you had to feed pigs at 3:30 in the middle of the night. Why is hunting for food different than growing pigs to be slaughtered for food, unless of course you meant 2 legged pigs.
18

,

28/05/2009 03:27:06
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
19

,

28/05/2009 04:24:16
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
20

,

28/05/2009 05:49:00
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
21

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 12:40:40
@21
Your math needs work. Boston is 5 hrs different from Big Ben.

As for the magazine, if you were "in the business" I doubt it because I know who's "in the business." If you were American and "in the business" you'd also realize we decided to not continue the name because our lawyer said although different and only publishing its Lit mag twice a year now, the Atlantic Monthly has the $ to sue and we do not have the money to pay.

I have a lot of people who want this to work. But it doesn't change the fact that I have stacks of entries which are really poor writing. What to do? It isn't easy starting a literary magazine at a time when publishing is tanking and kids can't write a sentence. But thanks for the encouragement. Everyone "in the industry" has a stalker, why should I be exempt.
22

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 12:41:48
And in those minutes... @21 from Nanny in the Kirkyard was deleted?
Well, I think I answered to your comment?
23

Horrible Cankers @ the Cyber Shebeen,

28/05/2009 14:53:26
Sarah Palin, Ignorance, and Stupidity
"Politically, there are two Palins, a difference which is never addressed.
Before the nomination, she was a successful Governor and expert on energy, with her own opinions and policies.
As a vp candidate, however, Palin isn't up for election based on her own opinions and policies, her job is to reflect the policies and opinions of the running mate.

It was easier, and more politically correct in the game of gotcha journalism, to eviscerate Palin for not having memorized and fully grasped McCain's platform than to acknowledge she was an expert on energy. (Her expertise on energy, IMO, was the reason she was picked as running mate.)"
Carolyn
http://volokh.com/posts/1225765882.shtml

How's the Real Estate business going?
24

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 15:17:44
@25
keep digging, as I've said before, my name, my family name and our businesses are public. We're not hiding anything. We're in many states and many countries, so this should occupy you for a while.

We've 38 patents, three are mine. You can post those when you find them. Wait until you find my award for managing my design business with art students, all having some kind of mental challenge. That was a life achievement for me. How about you? Done anything to help those who need help? Or do you just seek to destroy do-gooders?

As for your quality digging: I'm not in the real estate business. That's an F.

And by the way the last time you did this gambit I had 173 hits on my blog. Today it's around 30. How's the hit rate at the Farm? Any business?

Maybe if you guys just had conversations instead of trying to destroy people (who are real and do suffer the consequence), there would be more conversation.

25

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 15:20:40
@22
at #8 you compare Ms Palin to the indigenous peoples")


Incorrect.

I wrote:
"Sarah Palin being an Alaskan, "

then I wrote:

"Palin as governor of Alaska is similar to the Canadian Governor General, both are responsible to the people they govern. Both Canada and Alaska have Inuit populations who hunt for food."

-both of my statements are true, and your argument is lacking foundation
26

,

28/05/2009 17:11:33
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
27

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 17:55:41
@20
oh puhleaze, stop it with the self-righteous speech. Finnking posted this information weeks ago, and then Djookers posted more. I believe Sandy seconded the idea saying I deserved it. - where do you think he/she/it got it from? Finnking and Djookers are surely drinking a beer with great glee to a successful revenge.

The first person who speaks out against a tyrannical anything, is the first person shot.
Needless to say, I've never been bullet proof but I do keep speaking out. Like I said, I'm not canceling my membership in International Pen anytime soon.

>>As to whether or not this is HC I have no idea, except that HC and I both believe in "Free Tibet" with all our hearts, (and souls) regardless of how much we disagree on other matters
28

Carolyn 1,

28/05/2009 17:56:50
Really need an express order on the "Posting For Dummies"
Post #31 was to Post @30

 

Comment on this Story

 

In order to post comments you must Register or Sign In

 
 
RSS Feed of this article's comments
Delivery formats: RSS, Atom, Javascript & Email
 
  

 
 


Sister Newspapers:
Press Complaints Commission

This website and its associated newspaper adheres to the Press Complaints Commission’s Code of Practice. If you have a complaint about editorial content which relates to inaccuracy or intrusion, then contact the Editor by clicking here.

If you remain dissatisfied with the response provided then you can contact the PCC by clicking here.