Help orca Morgan back to freedom
Thursday 28 July, 2011, 11:26, by
The campaign for the release of orca Morgan is urgently in need of funds to cover legal fees. The Black Fish and other organisations secured a victory in court but the campaign is far from over until orca Morgan will be released back into the wild. Please donate generously and help to raise the necessary funds to get this campaign beyond the latest success and support the young killer whale in regaining her freedom. Mark Wijngaarden, orca Morgan's lawyer, believes the Orca Coalition has a strong case, please see his statement below.
Make a donation now at the Orca Morgan page on the Crowdfunding Network
In the case of orca Morgan I inform you as follows:
The recently issued export permit for the Dolfinarium is the heart of this case. So far, we have demanded that the Dolfinarium follows the conditions under which the permit to keep orca's for rehabilitation has been issued. We demand rehabilitation. If we do not sue the Ministry seperately for the export permit now, the transfer of Morgan to Tenerife will be legal, and it is likely she will be exported quite soon. After that, Dutch courts have nothing to say about the matter anymore, because Morgan will have left the Netherlands and cannot be rehabilitated here anymore.
I do think we have a strong case right now. We have a lot of expertise spent on the case, legal and biological expertise, and Morgan's legal situation is strong. Both international and European law demand that Morgan can only be exported if there are no options and the lack of options must be scientifically undisputed. With all our expertise brought to court I really do not think that the Ministry can uphold the fact that Morgan's 'need' for captivity is undisputed. So yes, we have a strong case, so far stronger than the Ministry or the Dolfinarium.
Hoping to have informed you sufficiently,
Kind regards,
Marq Wijngaarden
Attorney for the Orca Coalition
Related articles: Blocking the export of an orca | Legal action started for release orca Morgan | The Black Fish launches orca campaign with coalition
Orca Morgan in the emergency tank at the dolphinarium in Harderwijk.
Photo by Nekane Manjón
The Orca Coalition is a co-operation between animal welfare and marine conservation organisations Sea First Foundation, Pink!, Dolphinmotion, Een Dier Een Vriend, Bite Back, The Black Fish and Vier Voeters.
The coalition believes that marine animals belong in the sea, not caged up in tiny enclosures for the purposes of entertainment or research. We will continue to work together with other organisations to build strong opposition to the continued cruelty against cetaceans and other marine animals which are kept in captivity. Keep an eye out for updates on the campaign via the Free Morgan FB page or the @orkacoalitie Twitter feed. Support the campaign at http://www.orkacoalitie.nl
