Preview of the Major Issues
49th Annual General Meeting of the
INTERNATIONAL WHALING COMMISSION
Monaco 20th to 24th October 1997
Scientific Permits - During the 48th AGM a resolution was passed requesting Japan to "refrain from issuing a special permit for the take of Southern Hemisphere Minke whales, particularly in the Southern Ocean Sanctuary.
Japan has yet to officially confirm their take of Minke whales during this past season but are expected to have killed 440 whales within the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. More than 1,000 tonnes of whale meat flensed from these whales has already made its way into the Japanese whale meat market.
Japans unwillingness to cease issuing permits will certainly be discussed again this meeting.
Japan did succeed in having the commercial, socio-economic and cultural needs of these communities reviewed for discussion at this year's meeting.
In defiance the Norwegian government issued an increased quota of 580 Minke whales over last year.
A stronger stance on Norway's actions seems appropriate for this years meeting but remains to be seen.
It is expected that the contentious "electric lance" a secondary killing method will again be a topic of discussion. As in previous years the lance's effectiveness will be a hot topic. The whaling nations insisting that the electric lance is the most effective secondary killing method available while recent research concluding that rather than being effective, the lance "is likely to cause extra pain and suffering to an already distressed animal".
The Commission may reconvene the Working Group on Humane Killing.
The Commission is likely to continue its interest in the growth and development of whale watching internationally. The Commission has endorsed the Scientific Committee's recommended priorities for further work in the area of approach distances, activity limitations and platforms, and also that the educational, economic and social development aspects of whale watching should be discussed further at this year's meeting.
Debate over the Commission's "competence" concerning small cetaceans will probably punctuate the discussion again this year. Many of the countries that question the IWC's involvement are also those who have contentious small cetacean fisheries or have poor cetacean management track records.
by Paul Hodda - Australian Whale Conservation Society
Edited by Graham Clarke - Whales on the Net
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