A collection of donations raised more than 20,000 euros to erect a statue in honor of the walrus Freya, which became a star of the Oslo fjord this summer but was shot by the authorities in the name of human protection.
The decision to kill the young female of 600 kilos, from a protected species, made waves in Norway, where the mammal had won hearts by climbing on boats to doze there, even if it meant damaging them.
A controversy that has also spread beyond the borders of the kingdom.
An online donation campaign has been launched to raise 200,000 crowns (20,300 euros) to erect a statue for the walrus.
By midday on Wednesday, this objective had been exceeded with more than 206,000 crowns collected.
“
The culling of Freya sends extremely negative signals that Norway, and in particular Oslo, is not able to make room for wild animals,
” says Norwegian collection promoter Erik Holm on the Spleis.no website.
“
By erecting a statue of the symbol that Freya has become in a short time, we will remind ourselves
(and generations to come)
that we cannot and should not kill or erase nature when it is in our path
”, he adds.
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A displacement operation deemed “too risky”
Walruses typically live in even more northern Arctic latitudes, but Freya, whose name refers to a goddess associated with love and beauty in Norse mythology, had bathed in the waters of the Norwegian capital since the 17 July and attracted the curious.
Too much to the liking of the Norwegian authorities, who had warned that the animal would be euthanized if the public continued to approach too close to the animal or to bathe with it to the point of stressing it and putting themselves in danger.
These instructions not having been followed, the walrus was shot dead on Sunday.
“
A possible operation to move him would have been extremely complicated and associated with high risks
“, had justified the head of the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries, Frank Bakke-Jensen, in a press release.
“
We understand that this decision may raise reactions among the public, but I am convinced that it is the only decision that is worthwhile.
We care about animal welfare, but human life and safety must come first
,” he said.
Frank Bakke-Jensen and his wife say they have since received death threats.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre himself felt that the decision taken was “the right one”.
Feeding mainly on invertebrates such as molluscs, shrimps, crabs and small fish, the walrus does not normally attack humans but can react aggressively if threatened.
