Animal rights activists in South Korea are rallying to revive public interest in a beluga whale still being held in a conglomerate’s aquarium, despite promises made in 2019 that it would be released back into the wild.
The whale, affectionately named Bella, was one of three beluga whales first captured in the Arctic Ocean off the coast of Russia—forming a popular public attraction at the Lotte World Aquarium in Seoul since it opened in 2014. The marine attraction, housed within a mega shopping mall, is owned and operated by the multi-billion dollar group Lotte, South Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate with interests in department stores, hotels, and airport duty-free franchises among other businesses.
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Following the deaths of the two other beluga whales—one died in 2019, some three years after the death of another in 2016—stakeholders made the decision to release the last surviving whale, Bella.
But Bella remains, and the attraction is still open to the public. Animal welfare activists also say she has displayed signs of stress and aggression, common effects of captivity on wild animals. The aquarium’s official website hosts a section about Bella, but it does not go into detail about release plans.
In response to a request for comment, a representative of Lotte told VICE World News that the plan hasn’t changed, but that other factors are in play.
“We are constantly implementing [the promise to free Bella],” the spokesperson said. “We are unable to confirm the release schedule because we have to comprehensively judge the condition of the whale, how it will be accepted by the candidate site, and whether the whale can adapt to the new environment.”
In a separate statement, the company said it formed a committee in July of last year to take the proper steps, but the COVID-19 pandemic has slowed efforts down.
“We are putting the safety and health of the beluga first,” the statement said.
Despite being wild animals known to dive to incredible depths in pods of ten, beluga whales are popular attractions at many marine parks across the world, including countries like China, Japan, the U.S. and Russia.
Conservationists believe that there are over 300 beluga whales in captivity, and say that death rates are higher when compared to the wild.
Activists from the Seoul-based animal rights group Hot Pink Dolphins condemned Lotte’s inaction and called on the group to fulfill their promise to the public. They have also cast doubt on the promises to release Bella, and have been staging public protests outside the aquarium.
“We urge the Lotte World Aquarium to release Bella back into nature without further delay as promised in 2019,” said activist Joyakgol, the group’s co-founder who goes by one name. He added that it’s especially hard for Bella to be trapped in the same aquarium where she witnessed the death of two of her friends.
The activist believes that the issue is not only applicable to Bella, but to all cetaceans in captivity, including other types of whales and dolphins kept in aquariums. “Basically, cetaceans are not suitable for aquarium breeding because they are social animals that have to live in complex social networks,” he said. “Their natural habitat can’t be artificially built since they move extensively in nature.”
He added: “Lotte must keep their promise before driving the last remaining beluga whale to death.”
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) echoed calls to free Bella.
“In the wild, belugas are highly social [and playful] animals who live alongside their families—which have up to 25 members—for many years, if not their entire lives,” PETA senior vice president Jason Baker told VICE World News.
“Lotte World Aquarium keeps Bella isolated and confined to a barren tank with concrete walls. Their failure to free her has left her doomed to a lonely life of suffering and commercial exploitation.”
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