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More dolphin exports from the Solomons'
It appears that, as feared, rumours of exports to the Far East are no longer simply a rumour - report from the Solomon Star.
Update
Exposed - the profit exporters will earn from SI dolphin deal
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Dolphin dealer and one of the Directors of Solomon Islands Mammal Education Centre and Exporters Ltd Robert Satu is again, exporting the dolphins. Information on whereabouts the dolphins will be exported to, remains sketchy as reports of the export arrangement leaked few minutes before the private jet landed. |
However, speaking on anonymity, a reliable airport source revealed that the Boeing 763 jet took a 6 hours flight to Honiara from Pampanga, Philippines and could return the same route.
The source said the jet’s arrival also surprised some of them. “Usually, aviation and airport officials are informed properly on an arrival of international jets, but the flight just caught some of us by surprise,” he said. “We’re aware of a private jet coming but the arrival time was not revealed and the next thing customs and other officials did was scrambled as we were warned that the jet was ascending,” he said. Loading of the seven dolphins was expected to have taken place last night at the domestic terminal, as the flight will leave the country at 9am this morning. Attempts to talk to Robert Satu last night were unsuccessful.
Solomon Islands banned the live dolphin export trade in 2003 following an outcry over a consignment of 28 bottlenose dolphins to an aquatic park in Mexico.
Activists claim at least nine of the dolphins died in Mexico.Satu, who was involved in the exports to Mexico, claimed the ban was illegal and won a landmark court ruling last December that paved the way for dolphin exports to resume.After the court ruling, the government was swift to change its position on the trade. Fisheries Minister Nollen Leni has said the government would now encourage the capture and sale of up to 100 bottlenose dolphins a year for export, noting that water parks would pay tens of thousands of dollars for a trained dolphin.
The Solomon Islands Mammal and Education Centre Exporters Ltd Company was paid about $769,000 the Mexico export.In October last year, another 28 Dolphins were exported to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, sparking criticisms from Australia, New Zealand and the world.
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