Activists launch ‘Free Bella’ campaign to save lonely beluga whale from Seoul mall

The plight of Bella, a beluga whale trapped alone in an insufficiently small tank for a decade, has sparked campaigns in Seoul over her unethical confinement, demanding her release.

The isolated beluga whale languishes in a lifeless and weeny 1,224-tonne tank amid bustling luxury shops at the foot of Lotte World Tower, the world’s sixth-tallest skyscraper.

Campaigners have been racing to rescue her before it is too late and calling on Lotte to close the Seoul exhibit entirely. An international petition has been launched to demand her liberation.

Referring to the Lotte Group which owns the aquarium, Jo Yak-gol, of the marine environmentalist group Hot Pink Dolphins, said: “Almost five years have passed since they said they would release her.”

Bella’s early life and initial crusade

In 2013, the beluga whale was captured in the Arctic Ocean off the Russian coast at the age of two. She was sold to the aquarium, housed in the mega-mall beneath the 555-metre-high Lotte World Tower, along with two other male belugas, Bello and Belli.

In 2016, Bello died prematurely at the age of five, followed by the death of 12-year-old Belli in 2019. However, the average lifespan of beluga whales in the wild is 35 to 50 years.

A public outcry started soon after, leading Lotte to pledge to release Bella following the second death and again in 2021. Nevertheless, such efforts have repeatedly stalled, for reasons like the Covid pandemic, but are seen more as token gestures.

As things stand at the moment, Bella can be seen switching between aimless spinning and floating motionless in her scanty confines. The whales can grow to 5.5 metres (18ft) long but the tank is only 7 metres deep. “She lacks stimulation and is showing signs of a mental illness,” said Jo.

Dr Valeria Vergara, the co-director of the Raincoast Conservation Foundation’s cetacean research programme, said belugas are highly intelligent and social. “They cooperate with each other to the point of helping raise each other’s young,” she said.

“They have long lives, and, of course, they have a very complex communication system,” said the marine biologist, who has studied beluga whales for more than two decades. “Keeping such beings in captivity is simply unethical.”

Bella is one of five captive belugas in South Korea, alongside one at Aqua Planet Yeosu and three others at Geoje Sea World. Until recently, the latter offered packages where visitors could pay to ride on the whales. But these have since been outlawed.

The aquarium industry is thriving, in South Korea and Asia on the whole. Lotte’s aquarium in Seoul is one of the largest in the region, attracting millions of visitors since it opened in 2014.

The way ahead for the beluga whale

Last December, South Korea banned buying whales and dolphins for display. However, the law does not apply retroactively, implying that animals already in captivity, such as Bella, can be kept.

Bella’s transfer to a seaside sanctuary is “the only ethical option”, according to Vergara. Having been removed from her natural habitat at such a young age, Bella could not survive in the open ocean. Belugas learn necessary skills such as hunting, migrating and communicating from their social groups.

In a statement, Lotte World Aquarium said it was working to protect animal rights and was “ready to send the beluga whale at any time”. It said it was having discussions with a committee composed of the oceans and fisheries ministry, animal rights groups and whale experts to carry out Bella’s release “based on a scientific and practical plan”.

It added that it was looking at a sanctuary in Iceland and planned sanctuaries in Norway and Canada as options.

Amid the concurrent bureaucratic tangle and different offers from sanctuaries, Bella remains in her tank. Outside Lotte World Tower, the Hot Pink Dolphins group still protest, demanding: “Free Bella now!”

(With inputs from agencies)