SAY "NO WAY NORWAY!"Norway has announced (Dec'97) that once again it will open its controversial commercial whaling season (May'98) with whalers going after 671 Minke whales, an increase from 580 last season. The Fisheries Minister said whalers could harpoon 91 extra whales regardless of the fact that whalers caught and killed only 503 Minke's last season. Norway resumed commercial whaling in 1993 following a six-year hiatus, despite international protests and a ban by the International Whaling Commission. Norway's Fisheries Ministry argues that Minke whales are not endangered and that an uncontrolled population of the whales would threaten valuable fish stocks. The Minister, however, does NOT argue with any scientific evidence. The relationship between fish stocks and whales need never be questioned. A fishery is a commercial industry, not a subsistence way of life. Minke whales are not participating in a commercial industry. The more apt analogy is to consider them as subsistence hunters and they have done so, throughout history, without depleting any fish population anywhere! Should a fishery collapse or be threatened it is astoundingly naive of anyone who thinks that killing a bunch of Minke whales will elegantly solve the problem. At best it will be a short-term, quick-fix, needlessly wasteful "solution". |
ACTION ALERTPlease join us in calling on Norway's leaders to put an end to their illegal whaling program. Click here to find out what you can do with letters, addresses, telephone and fax numbers. LATEST NEWS for details of Norways actions | ![]() |
Norway RetaliatesPaul Watson, President of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, was seized in Amsterdam April'97 and fought extradition to Norway, where he faced charges of ramming a naval vessel during a whaling protest. Watson was previously convicted "in absentia" of sabotage of the whaling boat "the Senet" in 1994 and sentenced to 120 days in jail. The same boat, damaged by arson (Wednesday, 7th May'97) was unlikely to take part in the years hunt, which ended July 21. On Monday, June 9th, a cheer erupted in the Haarlem courtroom as Judge van der Pijl ruled that Captain Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and co-founder Greenpeace, will not go to Norway. Although the Dutch court accepted the technical ruling of the 120 day sentence, the court showed sympathy by making a surprising move when the judge announced prematurely that they would release Paul Watson on June 20th. It's Really About ProfitsAnd whalers don't lie! When asked about the resumption of whaling Truls Soloy, a skipper with a quota of 10 whales said: When told about a quota reduction Olav Olavsen said, by radio from his whaling ship, the Nybraena, off northwestern Norway's Lofoten Islands: During another interview Olavsen said the whalers would lose about $10,000 in profits for each whale allowed to live. "We won't be satisfied until we reach a normal, usual hunt of 1,700-1,800 hundred whales a year," Olavsen said. Olavsen might be right! Norway has steadily increased its quotas each and every season. In 1993 - 226, 1994 - 279, 1995 - 301, 1996 - 425 and 1997 - 580 (increased even though hunters took only 382 whales in 1996). The Law - UnderminedNorway has, not only undermined the effectiveness of the International Whaling Commission's total moratorium on commercial whaling, but it has also blatantly broken its own domestic ban on whale meat exports. On 6th April'96, officials foiled an attempt by Norwegians to smuggle six tons of whale meat in a container sent from Oslo to Yokohama, Japan. Here, the whale meat would have been sold for $260 a kilogram. A tidy profit for a product that would soon have been rotting in a warehouse in Norway. A new feature of this year's hunt is that each boat can only have an inspector on board for six weeks, legally limiting individual boats' hunting season to six weeks, even though the season lasts closer to three months. Last year the Norwegians killed 382 of the 425 Minke whales allowed by their government. If, at six weeks, this years quota of 580 Minke whales is not reached and a likely $10,000 loss per whale I can see a lot of observers swimming their way home. Am I right? then again, Norwegians know that foreigners who think whaling is barbaric are ignorant, interfering or misinformed. |
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