Morgan would only be allowed to serve for scientific research and education in Tenerife, it was agreed in 2011 when the animal moved to Spain. Nothing has come of this, reports the TV program Zembla. Morgan has even had her own song for years, where she does tricks on Phil Collins’ song ‘You’ll be in my heart’.
Amusement Park Spain
Morgan was found in the Wadden Sea in 2010 and was initially collected in Dolfinarium Harderwijk. A battle then broke out over the fate of the orca. According to animal activists, she should be released, but the Ministry of Agriculture decided to send her to the amusement park in Spain. A correct decision, the Council of State ruled years later.
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The export license that was drawn up stated no fewer than seven times that Morgan, who is deaf, could only be used for science and education. So the Loro Parque in Tenerife didn’t stick to that and trained Morgan for the shows.
‘No other option’
“I did not research Loro Parque in advance, I assumed it was all right,” said then State Secretary Henk Bleker in Zembla. He then made the decision to send Morgan to Spain. “These kinds of shows, they really shouldn’t have.” Releasing was not possible in 2011, Bleker looks back. “We didn’t know where at sea her family was, so we didn’t see any other option.”
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The Dolfinarium in Harderwijk would have assured the ministry that the animals in the park on Tenerife were actually used for scientific research and education. “I trusted that they had the expertise to inform us about this. I did not investigate further myself,” says the responsible policymaker Folchert van Dijken.
Intelligent dier
“Our idea was really that she would go to Spain for scientific research and education,” continues Van Dijken. “Absolutely not for shows in which she should do tricks. That was not allowed in the Netherlands either. It does not feel good. I am partly responsible for the fact that she has been in detention since 2011, in such a container. That is very bad for such an intelligent animal.”
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According to the director of the Spanish zoo, Morgan is involved in scientific research, but he also confirms that she participates in the shows. “These animals are smart and are constantly watching each other,” he says. “If Morgan were not allowed to participate, when the other orcas in our group were all participating, she would be very frustrated.”
Spanish authorities
According to Bleker, nothing more can be done about Morgan’s situation from the Netherlands. “There were no conditions in the export license that stated that if it turned out that the animal was taken care of in violation of the requirements, the Netherlands could take her back,” he says. “She is now the responsibility of the Spanish authorities.”
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