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Icelandic Airport tries to censor animal welfare organisation with U-turn on paid-for advertising17/06/2011 16:15:30 Meet us don't eat usJune 2011. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) appears to be under threat of censorship after the boss of Keflavik Airport in Iceland ordered it to remove whale conservation adverts. Meet us don't eat us IFAW had agreed and paid a four-month contract with the airport to display adverts in its baggage hall, including the slogan ‘Meet Us Don't Eat Us', part of a joint campaign between IFAW and the Icelandic Whale Watching Association (Icewhale) encouraging tourists to enjoy whale watching in Iceland and help protect whales by avoiding eating whale meat. The airport's General Manager, Hlynur Sigurdsson, made two brief telephone calls to IFAW's Icelandic representative saying the adverts must be changed or removed. Despite IFAW receiving no official correspondence regarding the issue, it is now being widely reported in Icelandic media. Robbie Marsland, UK Director of IFAW, said: "We are very puzzled and disappointed by these developments. We had been liaising with Keflavik Airport since March to ensure our adverts conformed to their standards and ethics before staff there happily gave us approval for production in April. "It seems strange that after following this procedure they should now ask for them to be removed. At the very least we would like to have reasoned dialogue and find out why they have backtracked on their agreement." Campaign to protect whales The airport adverts are one part of a highly visible campaign asking tourists to protect whales in Iceland. Meet Us Don't Eat Us leaflets are also being carried on flight buses and excursion coaches in Iceland and volunteers wearing whale tail costumes are talking to tourists in downtown Reykjavik throughout the summer. The campaign launched in Iceland on June 4 with an event in Reykjavik's Old Harbour attended by whale watching operators, tourism representatives and other VIPs. A representative from the Minke Whalers Association was also invited to attend but failed to respond. The Meet Us Don't Eat Us adverts, approved by Keflavik Airport's marketing department, went on display at the airport the same day, following previous IFAW adverts being carried in the same locations.
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Read the comments about this article and leave your own comment
Wake up Iceland, have you still not understood that your country can earn more money from whale watching than killing them.
Posted by: colin guest | 26 Jun 2011 15:49:14
Well done!
Posted by: hugga | 20 Jun 2011 23:20:40