May 12th, 1998
(En Français)

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Blue whale
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GLAND, Switzerland --Over 18,000 whales, the gentle giants of the
sea, have been killed mainly by Russia, Japan and Norway since the
international moratorium on whaling came into effect in 1985-1986,
according to a new report "Great Whales in the Wild" released today by
WWF-World Wide Fund For Nature.
The latest in WWF's Wanted Alive! series of species status reports, the
new report is in preparation for this year's meeting of the International
Whaling Commission (IWC) to be held in Oman, 16-20 May. It is
co-authored by Elizabeth Kemf and Cassandra Phillips.
Whales are still dying despite a number of conservation victories -
including the moratorium on commercial whaling (1985-86) and the
declaration of virtually the whole of the Southern Ocean as a whale
sanctuary in 1994. All whales face a wide range of new and increasing
threats in addition to being hunted directly.
Today, six out of the eleven great whales species are considered to be
endangered or vulnerable. For example, the northern right whale is now
the most endangered of the large whales, with no evidence of recovery.
The blue whale, the largest mammal to have ever lived on earth, shows
no recovery at all in the Southern Hemisphere (perhaps around 500 left).
The beluga whales of the St Lawrence river in Canada is so
contaminated that dead carcasses have to be disposed off as toxic
waste.

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Whale meat for sale in South Korean market
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Japan has killed over 3,600 minke whales for so-called scientific
purposes since the declaration of the whaling moratorium. However, the
whale meat subsequently ends up on the Japanese market. Japan hunts
for whales mainly in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.
Norway has caught 2,368 minke whales from a depleted population and
started hunting a further 671 whales at midnight on May 3rd -- in spite of
resolutions passed in the IWC urging them to stop. Norway lodged an
objection to the moratorium and has also killed 146 whales under the
guise of science.
In 1996, South Korea reported that it had accidentally killed 128 minke
whales as a bycatch in its fishery operations.
"The IWC must regain control over the management of whaling," said
Elizabeth Kemf, co-author of the report. "Other urgent priority actions that
can help save the whales include a strict ban on international trade in
whale meat, creation of more whale sanctuaries and marine protected
areas, significant reduction of marine pollution and making the existing
Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary safer for the whales."
WWF is encouraging carefully controlled whale-watching which in 1997
attracted some seven million enthusiasts -- and in 1994 generated over
US$500 million revenue. This industry is growing at a rate of 10 per cent
a year.
Contact:
Elizabeth Kemf at
+41 22 364 94 24 or
Someshwar Singh at
+41 22 364 95 53 or
Cassandra Phillips in Oman at
+ 968 713 142 (upto 15 May) or
+ 968 799 666 (upto 20 May, 1998)