Stop Seal Hunting

In 2006 the Canadian government allowed fishermen to club and shoot at least 354,344 seals in the North Atlantic—almost all of them babies as young as 12 days—just to earn a few extra bucks by selling seal skins. In fact 98 percent of the seals killed were three months of age or younger, and veterinary reports indicate that many seals have been skinned while still conscious and able to feel pain.
(http://www.hsus.org/protect_seals.html)

During the 3-year period of 2003-2005, the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) allowed a kill quota of 975,000 baby and adult harp seals and 30,000 adult hood seals.

In 2004, 365,971 seals were slaughtered, and during the 2003 season 283,497 harp seals were killed. In 2002, the sealers slaughtered over 312,000 although the kill quota was set at 275,000. There were no legal consequences for the quota overkill.
(http://www.seashepherd.org/seals/seals_seal_hunt_facts.html)

We all know what's happened to the Atlantic cod fishery. Don't seals eat cod? Yes, harp seals do eat cod, among other things. But both sides now appear to agree that seals and cod can coexist. In March 2005, Greenpeace called on then federal Fisheries Minister Geoff Regan to "dispel the myth that seals are hampering the recovery of cod stocks." A letter from Greenpeace said, "the DFO has been a partner in perpetuating this myth."

But the DFO says sealing opponents are setting up a straw man (or seal, in this case) and then knocking it down. The federal government says anti-sealing groups are wrong to suggest that it's allowing the hunt to help cod stocks recover. "The commercial seal quota is established based on sound conservation principles, not an attempt to assist in the recovery of groundfish stocks," the DFO says. "Seals eat cod, but seals also eat other fish that prey on cod."
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/sealhunt/)