Wednesday February 26, 2014 – Perth, Australia — Given the science, the November 2012 WA Fisheries Shark Correlation report, the popular pubic opinion, the world condemnation, the risks to human safety, the complete lack of logic in any way shape of form, Sea Shepherd Australia has been given no choice but to take the WA Government to the Supreme Court in seeking a judicial review of the shark mitigation (cull) program.
Joining Sea Shepherd Australia as a applicant will be Dr. Sharon Burden, the mother of Kyle Burden, who was fatally mauled by a Great White off Bunker Bay in 2011 while bodyboarding.
Representing Dr. Sharon Burden and Sea Shepherd Australia will be Principal Solicitor for the EDO WA, Patrick Pearlman and prominent Barrister Richard Hooker.
Sea Shepherd Australia and Sharon Burden have filed and served an Application for Judicial Review of the decisions and / or conduct of the State Government in relation to the ongoing Shark Mitigation Program, on an urgent basis for interim injunctive relief.
Sea Shepherd Australia believes that the tender process was unlawful, that the WA state government has been acting unlawfully, that the taking and killing of protected animals was illegal. The law contemplates some sort of process being in place to protect these protected animals and that process has been scotched.
We are seeking an injunction to remove the drum lines immediately on the basis that a Judicial review needs to be conducted as to the way the shark mitigation program was rolled out.
When the drum line program was first announced, Sharon Burden stated “I would like to see a legal challenge that requires the Barnett government to provide evidence to support their decision, I think we would all benefit from an independent forum that allows us to hear the facts without the politics.” Also, in a recent speech at a rally at the WA Parliament steps Sharon said, “There is a sculpture in the sand dunes at Bunker Bay directly in line with the surf break where Kyle was killed. We placed the sculpture there, not as a reminder of Kyle’s death, but as a reminder to others to appreciate the beauty of the Bay, the joy of surfing, and the need to protect everything in nature that we can sometimes take for granted. It has always been a place of peace and comfort for me. Now, as I sit and contemplate in this place, I can clearly see the drum line buoys directly offshore. And it disturbs me greatly.”
This is not a question of whether we think sharks are more important than people, its a simple understanding that sharks maintain our oceans, that are our life support system and we need sharks in our oceans. Sharks can live on this planet fine without us, but we can not live on the planet without them, its a simple as that. We need to co-exist with nature or we cease to exist as a species on this planet.
Sea Shepherd has been protecting sharks for many decades and since 2000 been working in assisting the authorities in the Galapagos in a bid to stamp out the illegal poaching of sharks within the Galapagos marine reserve. Sea Shepherd upholds laws for its global mission to protect the biodiversity in our oceans for the benefit of future generations. This is why we are questioning the legality here and this is why we are so actively involved in opposing the Western Australian shark cull.
