The images of sea lions remaining for at least seven years trapped in a concrete tank at the Attica Zoological Park in Greece are a powerful reminder that we need to reconsider what is acceptable as a society and what is not.
We live in an era where we seek to revise ethical norms and the legal framework to better protect animals and end practices of abuse and exploitation, even if decades late. But why is it still acceptable to torture marine mammals in concrete tanks, in places visited by thousands of people, mainly schoolchildren and families with young children, for a financial reward?
In addition to the captive dolphins, about which much has been said in recent years without any substantial improvement in their welfare, two sea lions also remain captive – and in even worse conditions – at the Attica Zoological Park. For at least seven years they have been living in a small concrete tank, approximately 10 meters long and 2.5 meters deep, that is, the size of a parking space for 4 cars.
In the concrete tank, the sea lions obviously cannot practice any of the behaviors they would have in their natural environment. All they can do is wait for thawed food from the zoo staff. As a result, the sea lions swim in circles and monotonously, making about 240 circles per hour, looking anxiously towards the point where they are given food. Instead of oceans and seawater, they are forced to live in chlorinated and chemically treated water, swimming in their own feces, which remain in the tanks until they are cleaned a few times a week. During the summer months, when temperatures soar, the sea lions are exposed to adverse heat conditions.
All of the above cannot be described in logical terms, except as a modern form of animal torture, a reality so cruel that one finds it difficult to even describe it.
Paradoxically, a few meters from these concrete tanks are signs of environmental organizations that supposedly protect wildlife, but in this way they ultimately legitimize and indirectly reward this abuse. We will return to what is happening in zoos as a whole soon. However, regarding the specific issue of the living conditions of sea lions in the Attica Zoological Park, the Archipelagos Marine Protection Institute has already informed the Department of Animal Protection and Environment of the Athens Prosecutor’s Office and their actions are awaited.
However, beyond legal interventions, the dynamic reaction of citizens and civil society organizations is essential. It is time to put a real end to this heavy history of animal exploitation and abuse, not only through communication moves, but through substantial, consistent and collective actions.
For Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation
Thodoris Tsimpidis
t.tsimpidis@archipelago.gr
