by Rebecca Regnery
In October 2008, IUCN members adopted resolutions calling for greater protection of whales, sharks, sea turtles, and other marine animals that are facing rapidly declining populations.
Save Whales—Not Whaling
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Whale vote results.© HSI |
IUCN members affirmed that non-lethal utilization of cetaceans can provide valuable socio-economic benefits and called on governments to strengthen whale conservation measures, including sanctuaries. In other words, whale watching and conservation can and should replace whale hunting. The whale watching and sanctuary proposal was submitted by a group of Latin American NGOs. HSI acted as their advisor, leading negotiations that resulted in an overwhelming majority vote in favor of the proposal.
Two days later, the President of Chile held a ceremony to officially designate the country as a “whaling free zone”—thereby solidifying Latin American leadership in protecting whales.
Two other proposals that increase whale protection were also adopted: one that debunks the myth that whales are responsible for declining populations of fish, and another calling for strengthening of environmental regulations in Antarctica, where Japan still hunts whales.
Stop Shark Finning and Protect Sharks and Sea Turtles
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| Shark finning is cruel and wasteful.© Paul Johnson |
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The IUCN also took another step forward toward ending the cruel and unsustainable practice of
shark finning. It calls on governments to require that sharks be brought to shore with fins attached to their bodies, the only sure way to prevent finning and thereby limit the number of sharks that are killed.
HSI helped secure votes to adopt a proposal to protect endangered leatherback sea turtles and scalloped hammerhead sharks in the Eastern Tropical Pacific by calling for fishery closures where these species are most likely to be killed unintentionally by commercial fishing. Finally, proposals were also adopted to conserve migratory and oceanic sharks and to strengthen the Europe Union’s shark conservation efforts.
Additional Proposals Adopted
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A harp seal in Canada.© IFAW |
The IUCN also adopted proposals to initiate or increase conservation efforts for dugongs and the
vaquita porpoise, and to eliminate the illegal use of poisoned bait in Europe.
Unfortunately, a few proposals were adopted that were somewhat veiled attempts give credence to the extremely cruel practices of seal and trophy hunting, but the overwhelming majority of proposals adopted will result in increases in global efforts to protect animals and conserve threatened species.
About the IUCN
The IUCN is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental network, with more than 1,000 government and NGO member organizations, and almost 11,000 volunteer scientists in more than 160 countries. It is best known for publishing the Red List of species threatened with extinction. IUCN members meet every four years to establish policies and adopt resolutions and recommendations. The 2008 Members' Assembly meeting was held in Barcelona, Spain in October.
Rebecca Regnery is the Deputy Director of Policy for Humane Society International.
