Japan Plans To Create Rival Organization Of International Whaling Commission (IWC)

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http://www.atuned.biz/public/ViewArticle.asp?ID=1025

 

Japan Plans To Create Rival Organization Of

International Whaling Commission (IWC)

Japan, October 10, 03

 

Japanese Fisheries Ministry councillor Akira Nakamae,

revealed the plans while attending a Southern Bluefin

Tuna conference in Christchurch this week. The move

could spell the end of the IWC, which was set up to

manage and conserve whale stocks.

 

Nakamae said Japan might set up an alternative

organisation to the IWC to manage commercial whaling

or join the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission

(NAMMCO), which includes Norway, Iceland, Greenland,

and the Faroe Islands, and extend its mandate to

control whaling worldwide.

 

Nakamae said Japan would push for change at the IWC at

the same time as moving to set up the rival

organisation.

 

A decision would be made on which option to pursue

before the next IWC meeting in Italy in July.

 

A spokesman for New Zealand Conservation Minister

Chris Carter said the minister wondered how many

countries would join any new international whaling

organisation.

 

" Countries representing two thirds of the world's

population supported whale conservation at the last

meeting of the IWC, " the spokesman said.

 

Nakamae said: " To be frank, we were very displeased at

what happened at the IWC meeting in Berlin this year " ,

referring to the IWC's decision at the meeting to

establish a Conservation Committee, passed by 25 votes

to 20.

 

The creation of the Conservation Committee, the focus

on setting up whale sanctuaries, and stalling over the

provision of a sustainable management plan for whaling

by IWC members was frustrating to Japan.

 

" Japan's position is quite simple. We aggressively

defend the position of conserving cetacean stocks,

which are at risk. However, if the stocks are

scientifically proven to be at quite a robust state we

believe that as one of the natural resources it can be

used sustainably, " Nakamae said.

 

Nakamae said it was technically possible under the

United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

to have several organisations managing marine mammal

resources.

 

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