Whaling update

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===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list =====

 

FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE

 

 

SEKIU, WA: 5:58am

 

ODI vessels report " no activity " by the Makah whaling team yet this morning.

Sunny skies, light winds and calm seas prevail in the area today...

 

There is widespread speculation as to the Makah inactivity this past week-

but there is no doubt that your calls and letters to your congressional

representatives, the National Marine Fisheries Service and other

governmental agencies are having an effect. Keep up the great work!

*****

 

 

 

MAKAH " SHOOTER " ARRESTED

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William ( " Billy " ) Secor, the Makah whaler assigned the task of firing the

..50 caliber weapon from the Makah chase boat, was arrested by Makah tribal

police several days ago for allegedly attacking his wife and family.

 

We have confirmed that an arrest was made, but are still gathering details

such as specific charges filed and circumstances surrounding the case. It

has been reported from tribal sources that the .50 caliber weapon was

actually used in the attack, but we have not confirmed this.

 

For obvious reasons, Makah authorities are working to ensure that little (if

any) information leaks out about this incident. However, we are told that

Secor faces a hearing on the matter tomorrow, May 24, and that this is NOT

the first time Secor has exhibited violent activity toward family members.

 

Secor's violence closely follows the pattern set by former Makah shooter

Wayne Johnson, who also has a history of violence and abuse.

 

The ultimate irony? The Clinton/Gore administration, well-known for

championing gun control laws and chronic NRA-bashing, seems to have NO

problem in putting taxpayer funded anti-tank weapons in the hands of these

guys. Remember: it's YOUR money being used to buy these weapons.

 

This would be a great time to call the NRA and let them know what's going on

out here! This would also be a great time to call the Seattle-area media and

ask them why this shocking development isn't being reported! (Visit

www.stopwhalekill.org for contact information)

*****

 

 

 

FROM PROGRESSIVE ANIMAL WELFARE SOCIETY (PAWS)

 

 

May 19, 2000

It has been a full week since the Makah have taken to the water. They have

attempted to kill a gray whale on six separate days this whaling season. The

Makah Whaling Commission exercises full control over the issuance of the

ten-day whaling permits. To-date, the same general crew that landed a three

year-old female gray whale last year is the same team making the attempt

this year. It is rumored that five other Makah families wish to hunt whales

as well.

 

The cause of the weeklong lapse in Makah whaling effort is open to

speculation. From what we know, there are internal difficulties with the

whaling crew. Though PAWS has heard specific allegations, we will withhold

publishing specifics until we can verify the information.

 

There are a number of protest vessels on the water. PAWS is represented on

one of them. Though the Coast Guard's 500-yard exclusionary zone makes it

nearly impossible, PAWS is trying its best to document the hunt and record

any underwater sounds a gray whale may make if struck by a harpoon and

anti-tank gun.

 

While the Makah whalers rest, the protest crews do not. Every morning, long

before the sun rises, the protesters leave their beds and head toward their

respective vessels to make the twenty-plus mile run to the whaling grounds.

Day after day. Week after week. Fuel, time and personal lives are consumed

as the weeks pass. Your support means a lot to everyone out there. Please

refer to earlier postings for information on making donations of money,

vegan food and fuel credits. Feel free to leave a message at PAWS,

425-787-2500, extension 811. Fuel credits are important: you can leave your

credit card number and the amount you wish to donate to ODI, PAWS, World

Whale Police or the Whaleman Foundation: 360-963-2311 at Olson's Marina.

 

We also urge you to contact your Congressional representatives and express

your opposition to this hunt that is paid entirely with taxpayer dollars.

 

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HELP THE WORLD'S REMAINING POPULATION OF WHALES!

 

>From May 22-26, the United Nations " Millennium Forum " will meet in NY to

discuss global challenges of the 21st Century. Currently, the only global

whale " protection " body is the International Whaling Commission (IWC) which

operates on the unenforceable 1946 International Convention on the

Regulation of Whales (ICRW) intended to regulate whale " stocks " . The current

world-wide moratorium is a temporary halt and under the rules of the ICRW,

the IWC can lift the moratorium at any time. In addition, no other cetaceans

are covered by the Convention and this is one of the reasons that the

slaughter of unprotected species such as Dolphin is at an all time high. At

the UN forum, an organization called Breach Marine Project will be calling

for an International Convention for the Conservation of Cetaceans (ICCC),

under UN authority, that would ask the UN to respect the wishes of the

10,000,000 + people worldwide who have signed onto the Peoples Resolution on

the Abolition on Inhumane Com!

mercial Slaughter of Whales. To sign this resolution go to www.breach.org.

Please send an email of support for the ICCC to the UN Forum and tell them

to adopt the Breach Marine Protection's submission at their May meeting!

Email Richard Jordan, NGO Committee on Sustainable Development at

Richardjordan and Esmerelda Brown, United Methodist

Organization at ebrown or write to The Millennium Forum,

Executive Committee, 866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 120, New York, NY

10017-1822, USA. Thanks!

 

 

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U.S. AND MAKAH TRIBE VIOLATE MANAGEMENT PLAN

 

Feeding Resident Whales Targeted

 

In a letter to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Progressive Animal

Welfare Society (PAWS) today charged the Makah tribe and the National Marine

Fisheries Service with violating a Management Plan signed by the two

governments on how to conduct the killing of gray whales in a marine

sanctuary. The Agreement specifies that, " Whaling permits shall be issued

with the intent of targeting migrating whales. "

 

PAWS Advocacy Department Director Will Anderson has been at sea documenting

the Makah hunt efforts. He has personally observed the plumes of sediment

related to gray whale feeding which is inconsistent with migratory behavior.

Research data indicates most, if not all, of the truly migratory males have

already passed by Washington. Remaining are the residents and offshore

females with calves.

 

Said Anderson, " That harassment is illegal as the agreement calls for the

Makah to avoid hunting and killing resident whales. The five days of the

hunt has resulted in every visible resident whale being chased repeatedly.

Excessive use of a powerboat to tow the whaling canoe each time they see a

whale surface has created this large-scale impact. The Makah have not made

an effort to whale further offshore as their ancestors did where resident

whales are less likely to be. "

 

PAWS has long held that the Makah hunt is illegal since the US government

claimed the IWC approved a quota for the Makah. " I was there in Monaco, "

said Anderson. " After the Makah quota was soundly rejected the year before

at the IWC meeting in Scotland, the US brokered an illegal exchange of five

endangered bowhead whales given to Russia for the Makah quota. The Makah

have never, and still do not, meet the criteria that allow whaling under

aboriginal rules. "

 

The IWC requires a subsistence need that the Makah cannot demonstrate.

Instead the US government unilaterally created a new " cultural " category of

whaling in its domestic whaling regulations (CFR, Part 230), long desired by

commercial " cultural " whalers. " There is a long list of illegal and

questionable acts in the administration of this hunt, " Anderson continued.

" Now even humpback calves are being killed in the Caribbean and no one fears

retaliation because the U.S. moral authority and transparent double

standards have corrupted our leadership on whale protection. "

 

" The Makah do not seem to be giving due consideration to their widespread

impacts on resident whales, agreements made or their international impacts

on whaling, " continued Anderson. " Last year, the Makah killed the whale

equivalent of a female child less than three years old. That whale was

curious and looked up without fear as the Makah let loose with their harpoon

and .50 caliber anti-tank gun. Where is the honor in that? " he concluded.

END

*****

 

 

 

 

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