On January 27th, with Government's approval, hunters in Iceland have killed another polar bear, only a few hours after it came to the shores of Iceland. No other course of action was ever considered. Yet, polar bears in Iceland are not unexpected. These poor animals come to Iceland because of the shortage of breeding grounds, due to the melting polar ice. Polar bears were frequently spotted in Iceland in 19th century, but the last two polar bears came to Iceland in 2008--following a fifty years gap. Both polar bears were killed.

The decision to kill polar bears were approved by the Government, because animals were considered dangerous, animals were not in danger of extinction, and the transportation costs were too high. This all is completely wrong. First, polar bears would attack only when provoked by humans. According to Polar Bears International, only 10 people were killed in Canada and the US, and only 19 people were killed in Russia--through the whole recorded history. No Icelander was ever killed by a polar bear. Second, while the polar bears are not classified as "in danger of extinction", all counties where poalr bears dwell--Canada, Norway, Russia, USA, Greenland (Denmark)--classify polar bears as vulnerable and take actions to preserve these animals. Third, because polar bears come to Iceland only occasionally, the costs of transportation are not that high: Greenland, for example, is only 1.5 hours of flight away.

Furthermore, the population of Iceland is only 300,000 and most of it is concentrated in the South, near the capital, while the North, where polar bears were spotted, is sparcely populated. Northern shores of Iceland could be, in fact, turned into a polar bear preserve. This would be the most accessible place to see polar bears in the wild and could attract tourists from all over the world, bringing revenues and preserving the animals.

Iceland is a very progressive country and to learn of such acts of unnecessary violance was absolutely shocking. Please, sign this petition to tell Icelandic Government that killing polar bears is not acceptable.

If you want to learn more, read this article in The Guardian from 2008, when two polar bears were killed: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/jun/05/animalwelfare.animalbehaviour

And another one: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/world/iceland-police-shoot-second-greenland-polar-bear/story-e6frev00-1111116666665