I'm happy to say that my country is the first in the world to outlaw the import of seal furs. 
From buzzle.com
Belgium has banned the import and trade of fur from dogs, cats and seals.
The ban brings the number of EU nations that have outlawed the trade in cat and dog fur to five Belgium now joining Italy, France, Greece and Denmark.
Belgium, however, has also taken one important step further towards animal compassion, by effectively outlawing commercial ties with Canadas seal hunt, which is widely viewed by other nations as barbaric.
A breakthrough in banning the international trade in dog and cat fur by the European Commission was thought to have been reached in December, but there is now a debate over jurisdiction for the ban. The ban was intended to cut off access to one of the biggest markets for these furs.
More than half of the MEPs in the Brussels and Strasbourg legislature support the motion, which normally would mean the European Commission has to respond by drawing up a law. It would then be up to the Council of Ministers to enact it.
However, Commission officials refused to accept that they have powers to pass such a law, stating that it is up to member countries to do so if they choose.
A spokeswoman for Pascal Lamy, the trade commissioner, said, "We don't have community competence on this. Competence for it is in the hands of member states."
The campaign against the trade is focusing also on the dangerously high chromium levels present in the tanning dyes used to disguise the appearance of the product. Fur products may contain as much as six times the level of chromium allowed under European law - a level shown to be hazardous to human health.
Historically, most of the dog and cat furs that have been traded in Belgium have come from China, but in some cases they have been alleged to come from animals picked up on the streets in Belgium itself.
In 2003 BBC reporter Tim Franks viewed a secretly-recorded video in which a salesman showed a fur buyer two furs produced from cats picked up in the streets and cats farmed in the country in a "cat fur farm."
It is believed about two million animals each year are victims of the trade in Belgium alone.
The trade in seal skins and oils, most of which come from Canada, have provided nearly 600,000 euros a year in trade of the skins and oils.
The Belgian ban was welcomed by the animal rights organization Global Action in the Interest of Animals (GAIA). Activists from the group said that most animals killed for their furs are skinned alive and when killed first they are hanged or drowned so their fur is not damaged.
Fur from the cats and dogs is used in gloves, accessories and in toys for companion animals. During the initial phase of the ban, labels on all of these products will have to state if the product contains real fur.
© 2004 Animal News Center, Inc.
Here a less positive link:
http://www.animalrights.net/discussion/fullthread$msgnum=69586
From buzzle.com
Belgium has banned the import and trade of fur from dogs, cats and seals.
The ban brings the number of EU nations that have outlawed the trade in cat and dog fur to five Belgium now joining Italy, France, Greece and Denmark.
Belgium, however, has also taken one important step further towards animal compassion, by effectively outlawing commercial ties with Canadas seal hunt, which is widely viewed by other nations as barbaric.
A breakthrough in banning the international trade in dog and cat fur by the European Commission was thought to have been reached in December, but there is now a debate over jurisdiction for the ban. The ban was intended to cut off access to one of the biggest markets for these furs.
More than half of the MEPs in the Brussels and Strasbourg legislature support the motion, which normally would mean the European Commission has to respond by drawing up a law. It would then be up to the Council of Ministers to enact it.
However, Commission officials refused to accept that they have powers to pass such a law, stating that it is up to member countries to do so if they choose.
A spokeswoman for Pascal Lamy, the trade commissioner, said, "We don't have community competence on this. Competence for it is in the hands of member states."
The campaign against the trade is focusing also on the dangerously high chromium levels present in the tanning dyes used to disguise the appearance of the product. Fur products may contain as much as six times the level of chromium allowed under European law - a level shown to be hazardous to human health.
Historically, most of the dog and cat furs that have been traded in Belgium have come from China, but in some cases they have been alleged to come from animals picked up on the streets in Belgium itself.
In 2003 BBC reporter Tim Franks viewed a secretly-recorded video in which a salesman showed a fur buyer two furs produced from cats picked up in the streets and cats farmed in the country in a "cat fur farm."
It is believed about two million animals each year are victims of the trade in Belgium alone.
The trade in seal skins and oils, most of which come from Canada, have provided nearly 600,000 euros a year in trade of the skins and oils.
The Belgian ban was welcomed by the animal rights organization Global Action in the Interest of Animals (GAIA). Activists from the group said that most animals killed for their furs are skinned alive and when killed first they are hanged or drowned so their fur is not damaged.
Fur from the cats and dogs is used in gloves, accessories and in toys for companion animals. During the initial phase of the ban, labels on all of these products will have to state if the product contains real fur.
© 2004 Animal News Center, Inc.
Here a less positive link:
http://www.animalrights.net/discussion/fullthread$msgnum=69586
