22 Oct 2007

Call for boycott of resorts which import Solomons dolphins

7:39 pm on 22 October 2007

An Animal welfare organisation has called for tourists to boycott resorts which import dolphins from Solomon Islands.

This follows last week's air transport of 28 dolphins from Honiara to Dubai despite protests from environmental groups and threats of an international boycott of Solomons' tuna products.

The Solomons Minister of Fisheries Nollen Leni insists the dolphins all arrived safely in Dubai.

The executive director of Animals Australia, Glenys Oogjes, says that boycotting resorts like Dubai's Dolphin Bay would send the message that the export of live dolphins is socially unacceptable.

"Even if they arrived in good health, if you like, what's happened to them is they've been taken from their natural environment and they're going to spend a life now in terrible captivity, something that such an intelligent, sensitive and social animal should never be subjected to."

Meanwhile, there are reports that the carcasses of three dolphins were found dumped near a holding pen where the controversial exports were planned.