SEA WORLD FURY AT PROTEST
TOURISM bosses have slammed a group of animal activists for planning a largescale protest outside a Gold Coast theme park as businesses struggle to shed the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
Dolphin Freedom Fighters is among several animal activist organisations that will meet across the road from Sea World on Saturday to protest against dolphin breeding in Queensland.
Organisers have accused Sea World of breeding dolphins to “perform humiliating circus-style tricks for a dwindling number of spectators” to make a profit.
Village Theme Parks chief operating officer Bikash Randhawa said the protest was a slap in the face to Sea World employees who have dedicated their lives to marine conservation.
Mr Randhawa said those leading the protest were unqualified extremists who could potentially disrupt what should be a memorable day for visiting families.
“Last time there were activists who stormed into Sea World, our customers got quite irate, we had some customers try to hit them,” Mr Randhawa said.
“It should be a beautiful day full of memories and it’s not fair on hard-working mums and dads who are faced with a bunch of ignorant individuals spreading misinformation.”
Destination Gold Coast chair Paul Donovan said Sea World employed thousands of locals and was a critical part of tourism in the city.
“A lot of these things are misguided because they (animal activists) don’t really understand. They look from the outside in and don’t understand what’s going on.”
Animal Justice Party member for New South Wales Emma Hurst is one of the key organisers of Saturday’s protest and said Sea World could have avoided potential disruption if it agreed to talk about animal protection.
“There would be no reason to protest if the animals in this situation were being considered,” Ms Hurst said. “The Environment Minister introduced regulations that will effectively end the breeding of dolphins for the purpose of entertainment and will also block any new dolphinariums from setting up in NSW.
“That actually means Queensland now is the only state in Australia that is still breeding dolphins for captive entertainment.
“It came in following a parliamentary inquiry by our deputy chair and what we heard as evidence in that inquiry was that dolphinariums are a dying business model.
“A dolphin born into captivity today could live in captivity for up to 50 years. This means they could still be performing tricks in artificial pools in 2070.”
Shadow Minister Environment and the Great Barrier Reef Sam O’Connor said the protest misrepresented Sea World which last year had “practically no revenue” and continued to rescue injured marine life.
“(Protest organisers) don’t understand the importance that Sea World has to the Gold Coast and particularly the work they do for our local marine environment,” Mr O’Connor said.
“The broader programs they run and awareness they run are such an important part of our city and it’s something we should be proud of and that all Queenslanders should be proud of.”
Gold Coast police said it was aware of an authorised protest planned for a marine animal park at Main Beach.
“A lawful public assembly permit has been issued for a static congregation between 10am and 12pm,” a police spokesperson said.
“Police are working with organisers to ensure the activity is conducted safely and with minimum disruption to traffic.
“The Queensland Police Service supports lawful and peaceful protest and is committed to working with groups to plan and facilitate these activities.”