09 January, 2007
01 January, 2007
Captain Watson Awarded the Kindness Trust Gold Medal for Humanitarian Service
Wednesday, December 13, 2006Captain Watson Awarded the Kindness Trust Gold Medal for Humanitarian Service
Founder and President of Sea Shepherd Captain Paul Watson has been awarded the prestigious Kindness Trust Gold Medal for Humanitarian Service for 2007. The award was presented by Phil and Trix Wollen of the Winsome Constance Kindness Trust.
In presenting the medal to Captain Paul Watson at Kindness House in Melbourne, Phil Wollen said:
"The Kindness Trust Medal was born out of a strange paradox. Every profession recognizes annually the superlative performance of one of their own. The animal rights and welfare world is an exception. There are few opportunities for truly great people to be recognized by their peers. The reason may be that their constituents, the animals, aren't able to say "thank you". . . . . in a language we humans would understand anyway.
We seek to redress the situation by speaking on behalf of the animals.
Therefore, we honour individuals whose exemplary efforts over long periods of time in difficult environments have inspired us to greater heights.
Winners have been
Mr. Pradeep Kumar Nath from Visakhapatnam,
Ms Jill Robinson MBE (China),
Mrs Christine Townend (Jaipur and Australia),
Mrs. Maneka Gandhi (MP) from India.
And now, one who has inspired a new generation to look to the oceans. . . . . . . where the abuse to ocean animals is every bit as obscene as those inflicted on land animals . . . . but their plight has been unreported, unrecognized, and indeed, unacknowledged.
Sea Shepherd, the organization you founded, is rare in its understanding that all animals, not just the land animals who were put on Noah's Ark, are entitled to our care, protection and respect.
That is a legacy with profound implications for this planet and one that should make you proud . . . . . and give us hope."
Phil Wollen, a former investment banker, supports over 250 charitable organizations around the world. This month, he was given the honour of being named Australian of the Year by the State of Victoria.
The Winsome Kindness Trust has assisted so many animal charities around the world, saving tens of thousands of lives and giving help to places where it is difficult to raise the funding required to truly make a difference in this world. Phil and Trix Wollen understand that strength lies in diversity and that hope lies in the passionate compassion of individuals working on the ground, in the forest, in the cities, and upon the seas. Recognition from such devoted kindness activists is truly an honour, and I accept this medal on behalf of the thousands of volunteers from dozens of nations that have crewed the decks of Sea Shepherd ships for thirty years."
Sea Shepherd welcomes your support. To support our
conservation work, please visit our donation page.
http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-061213-1.htmlhttp://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-061213-1.html
A medal and cash prize will be awarded to the individual who has done most to end animal vivisection in laboratories. It was inaugurated at the First Indian Congress on Alternatives in Chennai in January 2007.
Philip Wollen's address:
"The most beautiful single word ever written in any language in human history came from the Upanishads, three thousand years ago in India. . . . . Ahimsa. . . . . Non violence to any living being.
If we have learned anything it is this. . . . . . . in their capacity to suffer, a dog is a pig is a bear . . . . . . . is a boy.
Mahatma Gandhi taught us that a nation is judged by the way she treats her animals. The same is true of our professions, and our character.
As scientists we are called upon to use all our faculties. . . . intellectual, moral and spiritual. Most of all, we are called upon to test our consciences in the presence of souls who are utterly powerless.
It is our moral obligation to explore every possible alternative before we even consider inflicting suffering on another sentient being, each of whom is a child of another, and loved as we love our own.
Humans and animals are inexorably tied together. They need us to free them from their fear. We need them to free us from our guilt.
As leaders in our chosen profession, we can set the benchmark for others to follow. And we must.
If not us, who? If not now, when?
Let us commit ourselves today, in the name of all that is good; all that is honourable; and all that is kind, to do everything in our power to remove animals from our laboratories once and for all.
After millions of years of evolution, animals have earned the right to live on the earth in peace, and in our hearts.
It is not in my nature to plead for anything. But I plead with you.
You represent the cream of academic brilliance. It is not beyond your intellectual powers to develope new and better ways of testing without resorting to animals.
Please."
"The most beautiful single word ever written in any language in human history came from the Upanishads, three thousand years ago in India. . . . . Ahimsa. . . . . Non violence to any living being.
If we have learned anything it is this. . . . . . . in their capacity to suffer, a dog is a pig is a bear . . . . . . . is a boy.
Mahatma Gandhi taught us that a nation is judged by the way she treats her animals. The same is true of our professions, and our character.
As scientists we are called upon to use all our faculties. . . . intellectual, moral and spiritual. Most of all, we are called upon to test our consciences in the presence of souls who are utterly powerless.
It is our moral obligation to explore every possible alternative before we even consider inflicting suffering on another sentient being, each of whom is a child of another, and loved as we love our own.
Humans and animals are inexorably tied together. They need us to free them from their fear. We need them to free us from our guilt.
As leaders in our chosen profession, we can set the benchmark for others to follow. And we must.
If not us, who? If not now, when?
Let us commit ourselves today, in the name of all that is good; all that is honourable; and all that is kind, to do everything in our power to remove animals from our laboratories once and for all.
After millions of years of evolution, animals have earned the right to live on the earth in peace, and in our hearts.
It is not in my nature to plead for anything. But I plead with you.
You represent the cream of academic brilliance. It is not beyond your intellectual powers to develope new and better ways of testing without resorting to animals.
Please."
First Indian Congress on Alternatives in Chennai in January 2007.
Workshop to end animal vivisection in laboratories
Exploring every possible alternative
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