殺処分セイウチの彫像完成　ノルウェー

【オスロＡＦＰ＝時事】ノルウェーの首都オスロで２９日、昨年夏に同市の湾に居つき人気者になったものの、最終的に殺処分されたセイウチ「フレイヤ」のブロンズ像がお目見えした。（写真は安楽死の処置を施されたセイウチ「フレイヤ」の彫像。ノルウェー・オスロで。）
　彫像は等身大で、岩場に横たわる姿が表現されている。
　体重６００キロのフレイヤがアヒルやハクチョウを追いかけたり、ボートの上で日光浴をしたりする様子は多くの人を引き付けていた。
　当局は市民に対し、近づかないよう呼び掛けていたが、近寄って写真を撮ろうとする人が後を絶たなかった。中には子ども連れで近づく人もおり、強いストレスにさらされたフレイヤが人に危害を加える恐れもあったため、当局が安楽死を決定した。ただ、性急だなどと批判の声も一部にあった。
　フレイヤ像の設置は、オンラインで集まった２万５０００ドル（約３４０万円）超の寄付金で賄われた。
　除幕式に先立ちＡＦＰの取材に応じた発起人のエリク・ホルムさんは、「漁業・海洋政策省と国の対応に憤りを感じた」と、設置キャンペーンを呼び掛けたいきさつについて話した。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/05/01-17:12）

A bronze sculpture was unveiled Saturday in Norway of the walrus Freya who gained global attention last summer after playfully basking in the Oslo fjord until officials euthanised her.
The life-size sculpture depicts Freya lying on her side on the rocky shore of Oslo's Kongen Marina, not far from where the real 600-kilogram (1,300-pound) mammal last summer drew large crowds chasing ducks and swans and sunbathing on boats struggling to support her bulk.
Officials chose to put her down in August, citing signs she was experiencing stress and amid fears she posed a threat to the public who did not keep their distance as requested.
The decision sparked anger among some.
An online campaign raised over $25,000 to build the sculpture commemorating Freya, campaign organiser Erik Holm said.
I started this because I'm furious about the way the Fisheries Directorate and the state handled this situation, Holm told AFP ahead of the unveiling.
Beyond the issue of Freya, we need to ask ourselves how we treat animals and nature. We need to think about our relationship to wildlife, he said.
Freya, who was estimated to be around five years old, had been sighted in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden before choosing to spend part of the summer in Norway.
The walrus is a protected species that normally lives in the more northerly latitudes of the Arctic.
Despite repeated appeals to stay away, curious onlookers approached the mammal, sometimes with children in tow, to take photographs.
Walruses do not normally behave aggressively towards humans, but they can feel threatened by intruders and attack.
Critics said the decision to put the animal down was rushed and did not take her well-being into account.
Officials meanwhile said sedating Freya and moving her to a less populated area would be too complex an operation.