Dolphins at Sentosa: Universal Studios distances itself

Dolphin export
Solomon Star 14 Apr 08;

DEAR EDITOR – Your article published March 7, 2008 “Dolphin Threat Continues to Singapore” (wildfilms is unable to trace this article), alleging that NBC Universal, Inc. intends to import live dolphins from the Solomon Islands for the Universal Studios theme park in Singapore, has come to our attention.

Contrary to the statements in such article, the Universal Studios Singapore theme park, currently under construction on Sentosa Island, is not expected to have any Solomon Islands bottlenose dolphins or any other type of dolphin or other marine animal.

None of the Universal Studios theme parks anywhere in the world contain dolphins or other marine animals, and Universal Studios Singapore will not be any different in this respect.

Universal Studios Singapore will be part of a master-planned integrated resort to be known as Resorts World at Sentosa, commonly known as Resorts World.

The owner and operator of Resorts World, including the Universal Studios Singapore theme park, is and will be Resorts World at Sentosa Pte. Ltd., a Singapore company.

Neither NBC Universal, Inc. nor its parent entities, General Electric Company and Vivendi S.A., nor any of their respective other subsidiaries, will own any equity in Resorts World.

NBC Universal, Inc., through a subsidiary, is solely a licensor to Resorts World at Sentosa Pte., Ltd., solely for purposes of the Universal Studios Singapore theme park.

We understand that other portions of Resorts World will feature dolphins, but we do not know if they will be Solomon Islands bottlenose dolphins nor do we know any details as to how Resorts World’s dolphins will be treated and cared for. As stated above, NBC Universal, Inc., its parent entities, and their respective subsidiaries, have no involvement in any portions of Resorts World other than the Universal Studios Singapore theme park.

We have provided this information to the Animal Welfare Institute and to the other organizations listed in the above-referenced article.

Had your reporter contacted Universal Studios before the article was published, your reporter would have been provided with this information as well.

We request and trust that you will print an appropriate retraction. Thank you for your cooperation.

Michael Silver
Senior Vice President, Business and Legal Affairs
Universal Parks & Resorts

From the Resorts World website

"Universal Studios" elements doesn't appear to have "any type of dolphin or other marine animal""Marine Life Park" elements however, features dolphins and whale shark in tanks.
Meanwhile, the "Equarius Water Park" elements is "is nestled under the natural canopy of Sentosa's rainforest, with water rides integrated into the island's natural tropical environment."Wonder where this "rainforest" and "natural tropical environment" referred to is currently on Sentosa?

This is what the worksite looks like recently.Photo from November's chat with Resorts World's Corporate Social Responsibility officers on her leafmonkey blog.

From the Resorts World Corporate Social Responsiblity page, here's some examples of Resort World's corporate social responsibility ...More about the effect of Resort World development on the forests of Sentosa on Joseph Lai's eart-h.com

More about the effects of Resorts World development on the natural reefs of Sentosa on wildsingapore's doomed shore of Sentosa.


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