Inuk leader invites ex-Beatle to Nunavut

An Inuk leader wants rock star Paul McCartney and his wife, Heather, to take part in Nunavut's seal hunt.

Raymond Ningeocheak, second vice-president of Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, is urging the celebrity couple to participate in a hunt to learn about Inuit culture and the importance of subsistence hunting.

"He should take part in some face-to-face meetings with Inuit in Nunavut and meet and go along on a hunt, preferably in the higher Arctic region," says Ningeocheak.

• FROM MARCH 9, 2006: Inuit leaders fear new ban on sealskins

Seals may look like cute pets, but they are among the wild animals Inuit hunt to feed their families, he says.

There is no farmland in Nunavut to produce food, he says. Traditional food, such as seal meat, helps to offset the high cost of store-bought food in the territory.

Ningeocheak says the McCartney's recent anti-sealing campaign is disrepectful to wildlife and is harmful to Inuit people. He's pleased Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams took a stand against the McCartneys.

The seal hunt is set to start off the coast of Newfoundand at the beginning of April.