A leaked video purporting to show conservationists administering human contact “aversion therapy” to rehabilitated monk seal Badem, has sparked anger and indignation among academics and the general public both in Turkey and abroad.
The video, reportedly dated 3 April 2008, appears to show Badem’s carers hitting the seal repeatedly with a stick in what is assumed to be an effort to instil in the animal a reluctance to approach and interact with humans. TMG has requested clarification from the organisation responsible, the Mediterranean Seal Research Group (AFAG), and hopes to publish its response in due course.
The famous monk seal orphan has been in and out of captivity repeatedly due to her increasingly boisterous — and at times, dangerous — interactions with summer bathers.
The leaked video has appeared in major Turkish media outlets, including Milliyet and CNNTurk.