IQALUIT, Nunavut - There will no longer be any Bordeaux wine, Islay whisky, British lager or any other European-made alcohol on the shelves of stores that sell liquor in Nunavut if a member of the territory's legislature has his way.
Fred Schell is planning to make a motion in the Nunavut legislature early next week to ban the sale of booze from Europe in the territory's liquor stores.
It's a symbolic way of protesting the European Union's ban on seal products, Schell says. Canada boycotted South African wine in response to apartheid so the territory should do the same to the EU now, he argues.
It wouldn't mean much for the EU from an economic standpoint, he concedes. Nunavut only has a handful of stores that sell liquor serving about 30,000 people.
"But I think the message would be loud and clear that we're not happy at all about their decision to ban seal products in the European Union," Schell says.
"We don't agree at all with what they're trying to do with this seal ban so maybe we shouldn't be supporting (the EU) on the liquor because the government here does bring in the liquor for resale in Nunavut."
The European Parliament approved a ban on seal products last year in response to animal welfare concerns from the public. Although it has said traditional aboriginal hunts are exempt, Inuit groups say they will be affected by the ban.
A coalition of Inuit organizations is challenging the ban in European court, saying the move was made without conservation or animal welfare justification.
"That's the livelihood for a lot of these people," Schell says. "They eat the food here so what are they supposed to do? They eat the seal and then throw the skins away? They're hunted here humanely."
Supporters of the booze ban say they aren't worried about a backlash from wine or scotch connoisseurs in the territory.
"We're not banning other wines from other places. Whether it's from Europe or elsewhere, it still has the same alcohol content," says Paul Okalik, the territory's former premier who is to second the motion.
"It may have a slightly different flavour but so be it ... We're not just going to sit back and take unilateral bans and not take a stand."
Nunavut doesn't have a lot of trade with Europe so banning alcohol produced by those countries is the best way to grab the attention of the international community, he says.
The ban of seal products makes it virtually impossible for Inuit to buy the necessary tools to hunt for their livelihood, Okalik adds.
"We're suffering," he says. "We are not endangering any species. We're eating the product and we just want the ability to earn some income and trade freely."
Nunavut Finance Minister Keith Peterson, who is responsible for the territory's liquor commission, was unavailable to comment.
