On Sunday, 15 April, three orcas were killed by fishermen off Barrouallie, a town in western St Vincent. The Barrouallie crew have defended their action, stating they have broken no local law because the government is yet to pass a law banning the killing of these marine mammals, however, if a ban were in place they would adhere to it. One male orca and two females were caught and killed after scattering a pod of short-finned pilot whales that the whalers were initially pursuing.
Following the last orca kill in Spring 2017, Marine Connection contacted the Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, who shortly afterwards announced on local radio that a law would be introduced by his government outlawing the killing of orcas in St Vincent waters, in keeping with an international ban that the country signed on to some years ago.
In view of this latest kill, Marine Connection has again contacted Prime Minister Gonsalves asking why the promised legislation has not yet been put in place to protect orcas in the island waters and asked that this is addressed as a matter of extreme urgency.
The orcas, on Sunday, bring to nine the number of the cetaceans that Barrouallie fishermen/whalers are known to have killed since 2015.
