Makah Gray Whale Hunt - How You Can Help

[Guest guest]

Dear All,

 

As most of you know, Breach Marine Protection has opposed US authorisation

of

the Makah Tribe to slaughter and maim up to 34 Gray whales over the next

five

years. This opposition includes bringing the only lawsuit to challenge this

illegal authorisation. This legal challenge is now with the 9th Circuit

Appeals Court and we await their ruling.

 

Despite the inaccurate claims of the US media, Government and Makah P.R.

people, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) did NOT give its consent

to the US to kill and injure Gray whales at its meeting in Monaco, 1997.

Members of the IWC, through fear of US economic reprisals, failed to debate

US whaling both in 1998 and 1999.

 

This year, the IWC meets in Adelaide, Australia. Because the Australian IWC

delegation were the ONLY members to take a stand against US whaling, BMP is

trying to get that country to bring this outrage back to the IWC table for a

clear, fair and transparent vote on the issue. To that end, we ask for your

help.

 

Below is a sample letter we have already sent to Australian Members of

Parliament and Australian Senators which is self explanatory. We ask you to

modify this letter (or create your own!) and e-mail it to all Australian

politicians.

 

Urgent action is needed, the IWC sets its agenda one month before its

meeting.

 

Please help, the more they hear from us, the more likely they are to do what

is right. Your letter could be the one that makes the difference! All the

e-mail addresses are available from us; please let us know if you require

them.

 

Please pass this letter to your friends so they can help too. Thank you in

anticipation, on behalf of the Gray whales that will benefit from your

assistance, your help is very much appreciated.

 

Best regards,

 

Toni Gabbey

Breach Marine Protection.

 

Parliament House

Canberra ACT 2600 AUSTRALIA

 

Dear Honourable Member of Parliament (or Senator),

 

On behalf of Breach Marine Protection and its world-wide supporter base, I

would like to take this opportunity to express our deep appreciation for all

your government has done in the past to protect cetaceans, and not least,

the

great whales. Australia's strong and uncompromising voice within the

International Whaling Commission (IWC) and backing of initiatives to

establish international and domestic whale sanctuaries is a source of

inspiration and hope for all peoples of conscience.

 

But not all members of the International Whaling Commission hold your

country's high standards. At the start of this new millennium, once again,

the world looks to Australia for leadership.

 

The June 2000 meeting of the IWC in Adelaide presents you with a golden

opportunity to reinforce the current level of world-wide whale protection.

It

also presents an even more urgent opening to right a drastic mistake made by

other IWC Nations at Monaco in 1997, the results of which are now become

frighteningly apparent.

 

As I'm sure you are aware, at the 1997 meeting of the IWC the Australian

delegation introduced -- and successfully passed -- a motion to amend

sub-paragraph (13)(b)(2) of the International Convention on the Regulation

of

Whaling (ICRW) Schedule which dictated that the Eastern Pacific stock of

Gray

whales may only be hunted by " those whose traditional aboriginal subsistence

and cultural needs have been recognised. " The head of the Australian

delegation made it crystal clear:

 

" as the movers of the successful amendment that the International Whaling

Commission itself is the only body competent to grant such recognition under

the Schedule to the Convention. "

 

Australia further asserted that:

 

" the (Russian) Chukotka Natives' request and claim clearly met the

requirements of the successful amendment to the schedule in relation to the

recognition of both traditional subsistence and cultural needs; whereas the

request and claim of the Makah people did not. This view was endorsed

explicitly by a clear majority of the delegations participating in the

debate

of record referred to by the Chair. "

 

The IWC Chairman's report reflects the Australian delegation's view. This

report also claims by implication that the Makah Indian 'quota', tagged as

it

was on the back of an existing Russian quota, had been passed by

" consensus " .

But thirteen Commissioners spoke against the United States proposal at this

IWC meeting and only five spoke in favour. During the debate, ten out of

fourteen interventions by member states opposed the application on the

grounds that the Makah did not fulfil the IWC definition of 'aboriginal

subsistence whaling.' Yet the door was left open for the U.S. to claim that

they had IWC permission to allow the Makah a 'quota' of thirty-four Grey

whales to kill, maim and harass. Even the IWC's own Secretary Raymond

Gambell

was moved to belatedly qualify the IWC's position on the matter when in 1998

he stated: " The IWC has specifically not passed a judgement on recognising

or otherwise the claim of the Makah Tribe, since the member nations were

clearly unable to agree. "

 

To their lasting credit, the Australian delegation slammed the U.S. over a

press release it published that claimed the IWC had authorised Makah

whaling:

 

" The Australian delegation explicitly rejects each of these claims as false

and as giving an entirely erroneous interpretation of both the schedule

amendment as passed (with the Australian further amendment) and the decision

of the Commission itself. "

 

But the Makah whale hunt has still gone ahead with the killing of a Gray

whale calf last year. More slaughter is expected during the spring migration

of the Grays this year, whilst all this time Makah whaling is clearly in

contravention of the ICRW's definition of " aboriginal subsistence " whaling

and Australia's 1997 Amendment to the Schedule.

 

At the next meeting of the IWC, we beg of you to add your weight in the call

upon the Australian delegation to restate its amendment to sub-paragraph

(13)(b)(2), emphasising its meaning and intent: namely that the hunting of

whales may only be undertaken by " those whose traditional aboriginal

subsistence and cultural needs have been recognised BY THE IWC. " Further

more, in an effort to clarify this deviant " consensus " situation, we believe

that the Australian delegation should call for a open, transparent IWC

Commissioner's vote on whether the Commission recognises the so-called Makah

quota, in isolation.

 

Unprecedented U.S. political pressure on IWC delegations made sure

international law was to be violated. The ONLY nation to withstand this

pressure was Australia and for this, your country has our deepest thanks.

But

a terrible precedent was set in 1997 which puts all whale conservation

efforts, and the International Whaling Commission itself, in jeopardy.

Please, support the concerns of millions of people world-wide by ensuring

these back-door efforts for the return to commercial whaling under the

blatant guise of 'ceremonial' or 'cultural' do not succeed.

 

Thank you for your kind attention. I look forward to hearing from you.

 

David Smith

Campaigns Director

Breach Marine Protection

 

http://www.Breach.org: incl. the World-Wide Sign-On Petition in support of

the 'Peoples Resolution on the Abolition of Inhumane Commercial Slaughter of

Whales' (now with over 10,000,000 group sponsored and individual

signatures!).

http://www.whales.co.uk (soon).