Sorrento, Italy –As day two of the 56th International Whaling
Commission (IWC) takes shape, Humane Society International
(HSI), the international arm of The HSUS, called the IWC
Chair’s proposal to advance the Revised Management Scheme (RMS)
unacceptable and said that it exceeds the mandate of the
non-transparent Friends of the Chair group.
“This proposal is procedurally flawed and incurably weak,”
said Kitty Block, special counsel to HSI’s U.N. and Treaties
department. “Therefore, it cannot achieve the intended goal of
regulating commercial whaling in a sustainable manner.”
Further, HSI maintains, the non-transparent nature of the
proposed process is highly objectionable. Over the next year,
several closed meetings are planned in order to finalize the
document. The document, therefore, will not be available until
several days prior to the start of IWC for review by registered
NGOs and not available to the public until the start of next
year’s meeting.
“Because the question of whether or in what manner
commercial whaling will be resumed is a concern to all
governments and their citizens,” said Ms. Block, “this process
must not only be transparent but allow input from NGOs and
other technical experts to comment on the draft as it
develops.”
HSI holds that the IWC Chair’s proposal must not go forward
as proposed for the following reasons:
• Lifting 10(e) the Commercial Whaling
Moratorium
The Chair wants to lift the moratorium as part of an RMS
package. However, once the RMS is in place, countries can quit
and come back as a new member (such as Iceland’s controversial
re-admittance in 2002) and take a reservation to the RMS. This
will mean that countries can whale without abiding by any
regulatory scheme. The Convention would have to be amended to
prohibit such reservations.
• Scientific Whaling
The Chair simply wants a voluntary code of conduct that
would call on Japan and Iceland to stop their dubious
scientific whaling programs. Japan and now Iceland have killed
thousands of whales in the name of science. This code will not
be binding. Therefore, Japan and other countries displeased
with their quotas given by the Commission, once the moratorium
is lifted, will be able to simply supplement their quota with
any number and species of whales they desire. The only way to
stop the abuses of scientific whaling is to amend the
Convention.
• Revised Management Procedure (RMP)
The Chair proposes a package that will include schedule
language on the RMP. However, what version of the RMP will go
into the Schedule? The RMP can be manipulated to increase
quotas. For instance, Norway adjusts the tuning level, a highly
complex mathematical formula designed to establish whaling
quotas, to give itself a higher quota, yet they claim to be
still complying with the RMP. Likewise, the Scientific
Committee has produced several variants and hybrid variants of
the RMP, the significance being that the less conservative
models now available will yield higher quotas.
• National Inspection and Observation Scheme The Chair’s
text is not on par with other international inspection
programs. It does not recognize international observers or
Vessel Management System (VMS) tracking on all whaling vessels.
There is much documented and anecdotal evidence showing that
during the commercial whaling years there was significant under
reporting by vessels carrying national observers. Further, the
only way to ensure real-time reporting is through a VMS
system.
• Catch Documentation and Verification
An internationally overseen catch documentation system is
needed in addition to an international diagnostic DNA registry
(with a central registry held by the IWC as well as the
provision for sharing samples). The Chair’s draft only requires
a national DNA register.
• Compliance
The Chair’s proposal seeks to minimize the role of the
compliance committee and of the Commission. In its current form
the committee will do nothing more than review and make
recommendations on infractions to the Commission. There are no
penalties, no binding dispute mechanisms and no way to compel
countries to comply. Neither the compliance committee nor the
Commission will be able to take any enforcement or compliance
measures to uphold the provisions of the RMS. Therefore, the
strength of the RMS will become irrelevant if its provisions
can be ignored.
More information and daily updates on the IWC meeting taking
place in Sorrento, Italy can be found at www.hsus.org.
