Both sides, the pro- and anti-whaling factions, came out swinging in the first two days of the 56th annual International Whaling Commission meeting in Sorrento, Italy. Japan, the world's largest consumer of whale meat, took some serious blows to the body, but the country still could have the stamina to land an unfortunate knockout punch.
Japan set the divisive tone on the opening day of the four-day meeting by, as usual, objecting to conservation items on the agenda, such as whale watching, the conservation committee and two different sanctuaries, among other things. No vote was taken on Japan's objections. A vote, however, was taken on Japan's bid to cast secret ballots during the annual meeting; the proposal was defeated 24-29, which Humane Society International and other observers say will ensure the transparency needed for responsible voting among IWC members.
The anti-whaling faction, for the most part, landed its blows outside the main IWC meetings. Not only did The HSUS release its groundbreaking report, "Competition Between Marine Mammals and Fisheries: Food for Thought" by Kristin Kaschner and Daniel Pauly, which repudiates Japan's theory that whales compete with humans for fish, but a number of non-governmental organizations, including HSI, held a press conference denouncing Japan for allegedly buying votes and unduly influencing the direction of the IWC.
"The countries that Japan has managed to influence with financial aid like to justify their pro-whaling votes by exploiting the argument that whales compete with humans for fish," says HSI President Patricia Forkan. "That bogus justification should finally be put to rest."
The vote-buying allegations are serious, not only for Japan but also for the future of the IWC. One press report says the pro-whaling voting bloc has grown from just nine IWC member nations in 2000 to an estimated 27 this year. The number threatens to tip the balance of the IWC from conservation to whaling, even though the pro-whaling voting bloc is still well below the three-quarters majority needed to overturn the 1986 moratorium on commercial whaling.
Nonetheless, much of the talk out of this year's IWC meetings has focused on the swelling number of pro-whaling nations and whether this means the beginning of the end for the commercial moratorium. One news agency reported that IWC chairman Henrik Fischer of Denmark supports lifting the moratorium; more immediately imposing was Japan's proposal on Wednesday, July 21, to kill nearly 3,000 minke whales in the Antarctic Ocean, in an area that the IWC recognizes as a whale sanctuary. The proposal was soundly defeated by a vote of 19 to 30 with two abstentions.
While Japan's proposal didn't come close to getting the three-quarters majority required, it strongly signals the country's intent if or when the commercial moratorium is ever lifted. The threat of reversing the moratorium has anti-whaling delegates and NGOs, such as HSI, concerned over the sorry state of the Revised Management Scheme (RMS), which will oversee commercial whaling in the event Japan and its allies are able to lift the ban.
Kitty Block, The HSUS's special council for the United Nations and Treaties section, objects to the current iteration of the RMS on several fronts, from its lack of penalties for infractions to a lack of transparency during the creation of the document itself.
"From every angle you look at it, the RMS is a disaster," says Block, who is attending the IWC meetings in Sorrento. "In fact, there is a very real possibility that the RMS will do just the opposite of its intention: Instead of regulating commercial whaling, it could give whaling nations carte blanche."
(For a complete breakdown of The HSUS's objections of the current RMS, please read our media release.)
Like at last year's meeting, Japan has once again threatened to withdraw from the IWC and create its own whaling organization if the commission doesn't start to respond to its alleged whaling needs.
"Japan is still in denial about the conservation future of the IWC," Block says. "The country doesn't seem to understand that it's out of step with the rest of the world, which wants to protect these beautiful creatures. The only way Japan can level the playing field is by apparently buying votes. The IWC must stop Japan from hijacking an organization that has grown organically into the premiere conservation group for whales."
Check back daily for updates from the International Whaling Commission's annual meeting in Sorrento, Italy.
