Bugün Londra, Metro gazetesinin 21. sayfasını açtığında, Kaş’taki yunus parkına karşı yürütülen kampanyayı okudu, http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/894/733/349/ adresindeki imza kampanyamıza katıldı.
İngiltere, son yunus parkı tesisini 90’lı yıllarda kapatmış, balina ve yunusların gösteri amaçlı kullanılmasını yasaklamıştır.
Activists campaign to free dolphins ‘kept in cages’ in Turkish resort of Kas
Dolphins in the Turkish resort of Kas are being kept rusty cages for the enjoyment of tourists, say activists desperate to free the animals.
Their distinctive noses are covered in scratches from trying to escape as they dolefully swim round in circles inside a cramped and rusty cage.
The four bottlenose dolphins, captured from the wild, carry obvious signs of physical and mental stress with only a wire fence separating them from the open sea.
Pictures show the unnatural conditions in which the animals are being held near a resort popular with British holidaymakers.
They have been in the pen – which is smaller than the size of a tennis court – at Kas dolphin park in Turkey since December, when they were transported there in a vegetable truck from a similar site at Bodrum.
One resident of Kas said: ‘We are very anxious about their health.
‘The damage to the dolphins is caused by the wire that encloses the pen and they are all showing signs of neurosis. We wanted a vet to come and inspect the dolphins but the owners denied us access to them.’
Their owners do not have a licence to allow tourists to swim with the intelligent creatures and claim they are being housed on a temporary basis.
Activists are taking the owners to court but it is thought there are ten facilities like this operating in Turkey.
An online petition to close them down has been set up by Ric O’Barry, campaign director of the Dolphin Project.
‘The dolphins should be rehabilitated and released back into the wild where they belong,’ said Mr O’Barry.
‘Turkey has an opportunity to help dolphins and enhance its reputation in the world as a country sensitive to the protection of marine mammals.’