Marine Connection welcomes the news that a bill has been introduced by Deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Svetlana Bessar for a total ban on wild captures of marine mammals for cultural and educational purposes in the country. If accepted and passed, the new legislation would be a major step forward in not only phasing out the country’s dolphinariums, as many facilities still rely on restocking their facilities with wild-caught cetaceans, but it would see the end of killer whales and beluga whales being taken from their wild pods and exported to China for entertainment purposes.
In summer 2018, four Russian companies that supply marine mammals to aquariums caught almost 100 beluga whales and orcas over the course of several months for ‘cultural and educational’ purposes. The animals languished in tightly packed holding pens in Srednyaya Bay, in Russia’s far east for some time, destined for a life in Chinese aquariums. Following an international outcry from scientists, various NGOs including Marine Connection, Russian activists and members of the public plus actor Leonardo DiCaprio, the whales were finally returned to their ocean home over a period of a few months. Some individuals disappeared whilst still held in the pens and in all probability died. The captures were declared illegal and the companies responsible were issued fines.
Marine Connection wholeheartedly backs this latest bill which is being prepared for the first reading in the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia and will continue our critical work to make sure that horrific captures never take place in Russian waters again by calling for legislation to be put in place as soon as possible and all wild captures end permanently.
We cannot allow this to continue – we need your support to end cruel captures of cetaceans, not only in Russia but Japan, Cuba and other countries where a market for these marine mammals exists.
