Dear 49,000+ friends,
Today is the day to advise all of you who signed our petition and made such heartfelt comments on the disgraceful slaughter of songbirds and migrating birds that the company has not had the courage to reply, nor even the courtesy to acknowledge your concerns despite polite reminders to Sustainability Director isabelle.guyader@decathlon.com and Sustainability Communications Manager marie.chailllou@decathlon.com .
We have to assume that they think the issue will simply go away if they ignore our protest, and that the campaign lacks the energy and enthusiasm to continue to press for action. In this they are deeply mistaken; Decathlon’s exploitation of our wildlife, environment and biodiversity, which so blatantly contravenes all their own stated policies and vision will not be allowed to continue unchallenged
Crucially however – your protests have had an impact, and we now see the extraordinary spectacle of a multi-billion dollar company ashamed to market its own products. The particular cartridges which were used to illustrate our campaign appear to have been taken off Decathlon’s websites. These were previously displayed all across Europe, under their proud boast “Our hunting engineers designed this powerful cartridge….ideal for hunting thrush, songbirds, redwing, fieldfare and mistle thrush”. Clearly you have made them realise how utterly unacceptable this is in the 21st century, however this cynical and cowardly move does not constitute a victory for us.
1. These cartridges were never for sale online as such, they are an advert for in-store products because postal services do not transport live ammunition. Taking them offline therefore is very different from withdrawing them from sale, and simply makes the products less visible.
2. The offending cartridges were just one example of Decathlon’s anti-songbird arsenal. A check on 15th November confirm that for thrushes alone, Decathlon’s websites still promote a wide range of products including cartridges in no less than eleven European countries. Decathlon’s French and Spanish websites still advertised a full range of lures, decoys and cartridges all for hunting thrushes.
3. These sit within a plethora of munitions and accessories targeting a wide range of wildlife, embracing species from The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, including turtle doves, redwing, lapwing and long-tailed duck.
It is clear therefore that Decathlon are trying to disguise their activity, rather than face up to the challenges of taking a principled review of their policy and approach. If you wish to make your feelings at being ignored known to them, by all means contact isabelle.guyader@decathlon.com and marie.chailllou@decathlon.com with your thoughts. You might ask them,
Why have Decathlon not responded to our petition?
What is Decathlon’s formal policy on killing of songbirds?
What is their Decathlon’s policy on killing vulnerable species?
Weekly summaries on activities and any outcomes will be circulated here on change.org, as well as regular posts on Twitter under #stopdecathlonkilling. Please please help to spread the word there, and let us know if you would like to help support ongoing activities.
Below is the text a copy of our email to Decathlon last week, setting out the proposed actions should the company fail to make a meaningful response, we can confirm to you that these various escalations are indeed now being initiated.
Further to my email of 25th October presenting you with a petition of over 49,000 signatures asking Decathlon to stop supporting the indiscriminate slaughter of songbirds and migrating birds; with over two weeks passed and two reminders you have yet to issue a response or even an acknowledgement. I believe I could be forgiven for thinking that you are planning not to respond; and you are hoping that by ignoring the issue it will simply disappear and you can carry on as previously.
If that is the case, let me assure you that you simply could not be more mistaken. In the event of no response, or a wholly unsatisfactory response by 14th November then the next phase of protest involves a seven-point plan of action. I can share six of those points with you now.
1. From 16th November, we will progressively be contacting all “sustainability” organisations of which Decathlon have membership or affiliation; drawing their attention to your support for indiscriminate killing and pointing out how this specifically contradicts their aims and standards, as well as your own stated policies and vision. We will invite them to justify Decathlon’s membership status in the light of these contradictions, and to comment publicly on why they are allowing your actions to compromise their credibility.
2. From 16th November, every press release, Tweet etc made by Decathlon and the Decathlon team on issues of sustainability will countered and shared with a commentary on your support for indiscriminate killing, and its impact on biodiversity and the environment.
3. During November/December 2020 we will carry out a comprehensive professional review of Decathlon’s “sustainability” reporting, including your “Declaration of Extra-Financial Performance”, and highlight all those aspects which are compromised or contradicted by your support for indiscriminate killing; and your calculated omission of reference to this in your reporting. On completion, the findings will be issued in an international press release.
4. These findings will also be sent directly to leading international bird, wildlife and conservation agencies including the IUCN; with a request for them to comment, publicise, and make appropriate representation to Decathlon.
5. During December 2020 and January 2021, subject to all prevailing regulation regarding Covid 19, we will be visiting random Decathlon stores to make legitimate protest and ensure that all customers are made aware of your support for indiscriminate killing. Local and national press will be invited to attend to allow maximum exposure.
6. We are now in liaison with colleagues in the USA, obviously a major target growth area for Decathlon. While the US hunting/shooting community is strong there is nevertheless a natural and universal revulsion at the killing of songbirds and small migratory birds as promoted by Decathlon, so we will be planning a full awareness campaign highlighting your activities, to be launched in January 2021.
All of the above will of course become irrelevant should Decathlon decide to follow your own stated vision and bring yourselves in line with 21st century thinking and standards in relation to respect for nature, biodiversity and the environment. If you were now to accept and endorse the demands of our petition, there is still an enormous opportunity for Decathlon to benefit from the kudos of recognising past failings and moving forward. You would finally be able to present yourselves legitimately as a force for good, rather than focussing international attention on your current disingenuous approach.
Once again I urge you to make a meaningful response by the requested date of 14th November.
Sincerely,
Colin MacLennan