JOE GIBBONS/The Telegram At the St. John’s waterfront on Thursday, modelling various styles of sealskin coats on loan from Vogue Furriers on Water Street, are (from left) Eugene Leger, Mary Harlick, Keith Chaulk, Hedley Pinsent and Jason Crummey.

BY WILL HILLIARD  The Telegram 

A handful of Green Party members sporting sealskin coats on the St. John’s waterfront Thursday — one of the hottest days of the summer — could have been mistaken for a group of displaced fashion models. 

But Jason Crummey, one of the organizers of the spectacle, said they didn’t do it just to give Green Party leaders on the mainland, who are opposed to the East Coast seal hunt, something to harp on. 

“We’re not just doing this to thumb our noses at them for not supporting a seal hunt,” he said. 

“We’re just tired that after four years they won’t even listen to our arguments, for one. As a result, we don’t stand a chance of getting a single candidate elected in Newfoundland — not to mention being taken seriously.” 

Hedley Pinsent, another member of the Terra Nova Greens, the provincial arm of the Green Party, said his only regret is they didn’t draw attention to the issue sooner. 

He accused the B.C. Greens, who brought the worldwide Green Party movement to Canada in 1983, of having tunnel vision. 

“The B.C. Greens make up about half of the party’s 400 members and have much influence over the national caucus,” Pinsent said. 

“But there’s more to being a member of the Green Party than hugging trees over in Clayoquot Sound. The reality of our existence on earth is we do have to interact with nature, whether it’s seals or Voisey’s Bay,” he added. 

“One of the founding principles of the Green movement around the world is sustainable development. How much more sustainable can a controlled and humane seal hunt be? Farms do more damage to nature.” 

The Green Party, known for its emphasis on environmental issues, has never won a seat in any provincial or federal election. 

Similar parties have existed in Europe, Australia and New Zealand since the 1970s and have elected representatives to local, regional and national legislatures. 

The Terra Nova Greens have about 30 members, most of them in the St. John’s area. The organization fielded a handful of candidates in the last provincial election with little success. Last week’s stunt in support of the seal hunt does not sit well with the national party. 

“I think they’re trying to mislead the public,” Imtiaz Popat, a member of the B.C. Greens who heads up the party’s national fund-raising committee, said from Surrey, B.C. 

“The Green Party does not support a seal hunt because that is not what we stand for. There is no scientific evidence to prove that seals eat all the fish.” 

Harvey Scott, the party’s national chairman, said he’d rather not see a public debate among Green Party members over the issue. 

“It’s always sad when families have their fights in public, but I don’t know that ... the B.C. Greens are likely to change their position on sealing because the Terra Nova Greens are concerned that that position is hurting their public acceptance in Newfoundland,” Scott said from Athabaska, Alta. 

“It’s a fact that our founding members are greener than some of our other members across the country, and I think we have to try and work towards some sort of resolution on it. But some differences are inevitable, and the Green Party encourages diversity of opinion.” 

For the first time in years, this year East Coast sealers failed to take all the seals allocated for the hunt. Preliminary figures show that the total number of animals harvested this spring was about 45,000 below the total allowable catch limits of 275,000 harp seals and 100,000 hoods. 

     If there was one thing organizers of a candidates’ forum knew and feared they could count on Wednesday night, it was rhetoric. They weren’t disappointed. 

     In fairness to the candidates, the sheer scope of topics didn’t help. The Community Alliance for Better Solutions’ public forum touched on everything from housing to abortion billing to workers’ compensation, with gay rights and food banks thrown in for good measure. 

     Time was also a factor. With about 200 people from all walks of life crowded into the E.B. Foran Room at St. John’s City Hall, it quickly became evident not everyone would get to question NDP Leader Jack Harris, Liberal Julie Bettney, Tory John Ottenheimer and Newfoundland and Labrador Party Leader Sue Kelland-Dyer on the issues. 

     Those who did, however, made convincing points the candidates dared not dispute. “A lot of us may like the rhetoric we’re hearing tonight but a lot of us would also like to see a      lot more action,” said Annette Stapenhorst, co-chairwoman of the Food Security Network. 

     “If’s there’s a million dollars (for the school lunch program) then make it a million dollars … an endowment, not say it’s going here and there.” 

     Dyer appeared the crowd favourite, avoiding rhetoric at all cost and keeping her points simple and straightforward. "I can’t believe we still have a school lunch program,” she said in response to a question on keeping it funded. “I can’t believe we’re spending millions on multi-national corporations when our children don’t have enough to eat. 

     “The GDP (gross domestic product) is growing, yes, but you can’t eat the GDP,” she said to enthusiastic applause. 

     Candidates were asked by a special panel what they’d do if, hypothetically, they were given  $50 million to $100 million to spend on social programs. 

     Bettney likened the scenario to a dream coming true or winning the lottery, something all the others attacked. 

     “We’re not taking about some lottery or a dream,” said Harris. “We’re talking about something we had 10 years ago and government took away. It’s something we deserve, not  a dream to have.” 

     Housing raised the ire of many in the room, thanks in part to an eloquent one-minute spiel by Deputy Mayor Marie White who appeared on behalf of the disabled. 

     “There are more seniors, more disabled and less housing,” she said. “None of the problems we’re talking about here tonight can be solved unless people have a home, not a house.” 

     While the Tories and Liberals consistently referred to party platforms in their blue and red books prepared for the Feb. 9 election, Harris and Dyer pleased the crowd more with specific examples related to the individual concerns raised. 

     And speaking of raising things, the Terra Nova Green party, while not represented on the panel, seized the opportunity to carry a huge green and white banner around the room  emblazoned with the words “ban draggers,” referring to the raping of the ocean floor by the
     vessels. 

     Other candidates in the audience included Liberal Pete Soucy, New Democrat Dale Kirby and Terra Nova Greens Jason Crummey and Jon Whalen. 

     The Community Alliance for Better Solutions is a coalition of more than 100 groups province wide. Formed in 1996, it was born out of concern over increasing poverty and joblessness, cuts to social programs and the impact of deficit-cutting policies.