Pa Manz Torti - Turtles are not pigs
Heartfelt songs and speeches from the next generation of conservationists filled the hall of the National Theatre in Mont Fleuri during the launch of the annual Sea Turtle Festival, entertaining while educating guests of the importance of sea turtle protection in Seychelles.
The hawksbill turtle and the green turtles are endangered species found in Seychelles. In fact Seychelles has one of the world’s largest populations of the hawksbill turtle, which is listed by the IUCN as a critically endangered species.
Through art, debate and song competitions centred around the theme ‘Sea Turtle Conservation in the Seychelles’, the best of which were showcased at the launch of the festival, youth from various schools defended the right of sea turtles to wander the seas freely as they have for millions of years.
The festival brought together individuals and organizations passionate about and working in sea turtle conservation as does Nature Seychelles. Nature Seychelles participated in the Festival because it has a turtle conservation program on Cousin Island Special Reserve. The NGO is running the world’s longest running monitoring program for Hawksbill turtles in the world.
Nature Seychelles invites young people from all over the world to participate in turtle conservation on Cousin and has supported schools and wildlife clubs with educational materials, such as posters. In fact at the festival, Nature Seychelles’ Conservation Manager April Burt distributed turtle posters made by the NGO and encouraged young people to take up careers in conservation by speaking to them of the ongoing turtle conservation work on Cousin Island, the single most important nesting site for the Hawksbill turtle species in the West Indian Ocean.
Traditionally, marine turtles, more so Green Turtles were an important food source for Seychellois until 1994 when the government of Seychelles passed a law making it illegal to kill, eat or own turtle meat.
In their artwork, songs and speeches, the youth participating at the launch of the sea turtle festival were clearly aware of and horrified in their knowledge of turtle harvesting activities, which although does not occur at the rates prior to the 1990s, still occurs sporadically. Yet they were determined to change attitudes, if not of the older generation, then definitely that of their peers to protect rather than poach sea turtles.
There were also several speeches presented at the launch by conservationists and representatives of various organisations working in marine conservation in the Seychelles. Notably, Dr. Jeanne Mortimer presenting the final speech of the afternoon during the launch held the attention of the audience when she said “turtles are not pigs”. She compared the widely differing life cycles of pigs and sea turtles by showing how pig populations only required nine months to recover while sea turtles required fifty years and can therefore not be eaten at the same rate.
On Saturday afternoon at Beau Vallon Beach, the tone of the festival took on a more festive feel but the underlying need for protection of turtles was just as powerful if not more so. Through fun activities by various organizations working in marine conservation, children were treated to face paintings, arts and crafts, kite competitions, sand (turtle) castle competitions and other fun activities centred around turtle research and conservation.
Adults were equally caught up in the excitement and several could be seen showing off temporary turtle tattoos on their faces and legs. The location of Beau Vallon beach is also centrally located which guaranteed it was well attended by many Seychellois as well as international tourists
Photos: 1) Young MCs at the launch 2) Singing for the protection of turtles 3) April giving out posters in Beau Vallon Beach 4) Turtle face painting
