Action on October 29 before the Aix-en-Provence court of appeal against the transfer of Wikie and Keijo
In January 2024, the legal tribunal of Grasse forbade Marineland to move the orcas before the end of the independent expert assessment we had obtained from the court of appeal of Aix-en-Provence. Marineland immediately appealed this decision. On Tuesday October 29, the magistrates will hear the trainers’ request. One Voice will represent the two orcas at the hearing. To prevent Wikie and Keijo from being transferred to another dolphinarium, we invite you to join our activists outside the court of appeal from 8.45am to 11am.
Just over a year ago, Moana passed away. A few months later, Inouk died too, leaving Wikie and Keijo alone and grieving. Since then, we have ensured that the independent expert assessment we obtained concerning the health of the two deceased orcas and the state of Marineland’s facilities will continue. The park has always opposed this assessment, despite the extremely worrying situation of the animals it holds. When the administrative court in Grasse forbade it to move them before the independent experts had completed their work, the dolphinarium appealed. Its objective is clear: to get rid of the orcas as quickly as possible.
Wikie and Keijo must not be sent to other places of death!
If the Aix-en-Provence court of appeal were to rule in Marineland’s favor, the two survivors would be sent without further delay to even smaller tanks than those in which they have been held since birth. Whether transferred to Japan or Loro Parque in Tenerife, mother and son would be separated from each other, permanently shattering their family and the little psychic equilibrium they have left. In either case, Wikie would once again be exploited for reproduction, unwillingly giving birth to new offspring who would in turn suffer from captivity for the rest of their lives. Provided they manage to survive… If the November 2021 law has, as it boasts, succeeded in protecting the smallest animal, it has in any case consciously forgotten to concern itself with the orcas.
They need urgent care…..
For years, we have been sounding the alarm about Moana and Inouk. Their state of health was critical, and it was vital that a competent team should intervene, as we have repeatedly stated, backed up by expert reports. The dolphinarium let the two orcas die, and today, when we warn that Wikie and Keijo are in no condition to be transported and urgently need appropriate care, our demands are once again brushed aside? We will not allow the two survivors to be sacrificed on the altar of profit!
….. before they can join a sanctuary
If they are able to recover, we are prepared to offer them a dignified retirement in a sanctuary off the coast of Nova Scotia. This project, which we have been working on with the Whale Sanctuary Project for some time, is the only viable one for Wikie and Keijo. The authors of the report commissioned by the Ministry of Ecology and published last September, studied our proposal and concluded that it should be explored. We’re counting on it… It’s about time!
On Tuesday October 29, from 8.45am to 11am, join us in front of the court of appeal in Aix-en-Provence to refuse to allow Marineland to send Wikie and Keijo to foreign tanks! And sign our petition for a sanctuary!