The founding president of the Canadian Sealers Association says now is a prime opportunity to raise what he calls the immoral laws barring seal products from EU markets, but he’s not optimistic that the political will is there to do so.

Jim Winter says laws in EU were put place in direct response to animal rights organizations whose main purpose was to get human kind to stop using animals for their needs.

Winter says the commercial seal hunt was used as propaganda to spread that message, and it worked.

He told VOCM Open Line with Paddy Daly that the way to solve the issue is for the government of Canada to “get some backbone.”

He says Ottawa needs to be clear, if you want access to our resources and trade, then “stop putting in place immoral laws, laws that are not based in anything at all other than propaganda.”

Premier Andrew Furey wore a seal skin coat when greeting European Union leaders at Quidi Vidi Brewing last night. Winter says simply wearing clothes doesn’t put the issue on the agenda.

He says in his time advocating for the seal fishery there was “never a Canadian politician who did much more than stand up and wear the sealskin jacket and make token announcements.” He says “it’s necessary to defend the rights of our citizens.”