Seals Around the World Sweden Launches Annual Seal Hunt Sweden has joined the small group of barbaric nations that continues to slaughter seals. In April, the Swedes announced an immediate hunt to kill 179 Baltic Grey seals, ending a 25-year ban on sealing. This is the first step to wage violence on these seals. The Swedes apparently have bought the lie that seals need to be killed to protect fish. Once again the seals must suffer as scapegoats for the greed of corporate over-fishing. Sea Shepherd crewmember Par Odin Lothman has organized a Sea Shepherd group for the Baltic and he is in the process of raising funds for a Baltic patrol boat. One of the priorities of our Baltic Sea Shepherd is to protect the seals and the fish in the Baltic Sea.   From Correspondents in Stockholm April 16, 2004 SWEDEN begins its annual seal hunt in the Baltic Sea tomorrow, with a total of 170 grey seals to be culled before the end of the year, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency said. The agency said there were an estimated 16,000 seals in the Baltic Sea . The hunt is authorized along with the Swedish coast to help minimize the 50 million kronor ($8.88 million) in damage the seals are said to cause the fishing industry every year. The animals will only be allowed to be hunted from land, not from boats. In addition to the cull, the regions along the coast will receive 18 million kronor in subsidies to help prevent damage to their fishing industry, such as developing “seal-proof” fishing equipment and methods, the agency said.