 Pamela Anderson will appear with a 'baby seal' outside the Ontario legislature in Toronto on Friday, October 23, 2009, to unveil PETA's new campaign against Canada's commercial seal slaughter. An ad series that features Anderson and other celebrities calling for an end to the annual hunt. (Photo courtesy PETA)
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TORONTO -- Former "Baywatch" star Pamela Anderson wants to save the seals from the annual hunt on Canada’s East Coast.
The Canadian-born actress and animal rights activist is among several celebrities who are taking part in an ad campaign by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
"I can only hope that by bringing attention to the slaughter, the international outcry will force the Canadian government to end this shameful practice," the Canadian-born Anderson said in a statement. "Canadians aren't cruel and indifferent, but our leaders have been on this issue."
Anderson, 42, is one of more than 20 celebrities to appear in PETA's new "Save The Seals" ads, which target the Canadian government and seal hunters.
The ads, which also feature celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, Brody Jenner of The Hills, fellow Canadian and Playboy model Jayde Nicole, Kelly Osbourne and others, call for a "permanent end to Canada's cruel seal slaughter."
But a federal government spokesman said the seal hunt isn't going anywhere, no matter who protests.
"There will always be sealing in Canada because it's a legitimate activity for hard-working Canadians who are trying to make a living," said Phil Jenkins, spokesman for Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
PETA senior vice-president Dan Mathews, who is based in New York but often travels to Canada, insisted none of Canada's sealers depend on the hunt for their primary income.
"It's not a subsistence hunt, it's a greedy, commercial off-season cash bonus and it's the violent massacre of marine mammals to line your pockets with a tiny bit of extra money," Mathews said. "It has nothing to do with their livelihoods whatsoever and it's absolutely out of control."
Jenkins said the hunt is highly regulated and that for remote fishing communities, there are few income options.
"For those communities in the Far North, the seal hunt is absolutely critical to their diet and their income," Jenkins said, referring to the Inuit hunt in Nunavut, which isn't regulated by the federal government.
There are about 6,000 active sealing licences in Canada, with 70% of the federally regulated seal hunt taking place in Newfoundland, Jenkins said. There are also regulated sealers in Quebec, P.E.I., New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Some of those sealers depend on the hunt for 20% to 30% of their income, he said.
With files from The Canadian Press
