Press release - 19 July, 2004
The future of whales appears to be more uncertain than ever as the 56th meeting of the International Whaling Commission, IWC, begins. The number of countries in favour of whaling at the IWC is steadily increasing, not because opponents of whaling world-wide have changed their minds, but because new members are being recruited with promises of financial aid. (1)
Greenpeace volunteers sail to mark the launch of the IWC (International Whaling Commission) opening in Naples , Italy this week
"Some of the poorest developing countries in the world are being
used to vote in favour of whaling," said campaigner John Frizell,
of Greenpeace International. "This is a clear case of "money talks"
and it's happening right in front of us. It is time we put a stop
to this ongoing vote buying, before it is too late." (2)
Cote d'Ivoire, Mauritania, Surinam and Tuvalu joined the IWC
this year and are all expected to vote for a resumption of whaling.
The reason for their interest is openly stated in the Japanese
press.
Japan's IWC Commissioner explained it to the Japanese press last
month by saying: "We have been putting our efforts to appeal to
every potential nation at all levels and at all possible
venues."
The nature of these "appeals" is well documented: Japan's former
vice minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, Hiraoki
Kameya, said in June 1999 that it was "essential to increase the
number of nations supportive to Japan ... [and therefore] necessary
to couple effectively the ODA (3) and the promotion of IWC
membership."
Antigua's former Prime Minister Lester Bird was even more direct
"I make no bones about it ... if we are able to support the
Japanese and the quid pro quo is that they are going to give us
some assistance ... that is part of why we do so."
"The balance at the IWC is so close now that issues may turn on
a single vote" said Frizell. "It is appalling that a conservation
measure supported by hundreds of millions of people around the
world could be swept away by a well financed campaign of vote
buying by a government representing the interests of an outdated
industry."
VVPR info: More information available athttp://www.greenpeace.org/international_en/reports/?campaign%5fid=4017
Notes: (1) The annual IWC meeting takes place from 19th-23rd of July in Sorrento, Italy. The IWC was established in 1946 in response to the over catching of whales and it agreed to a moratorium on commercial whaling in 1982 because of its continuing failure to manage whales without their populations declining. (2) The pro whaling lobby in the IWC is lead by Japan. Since the 1990s they have used a tactic of buying votes to gain a majority to overturn the ban on whaling.(3) ODA is Overseas Development Assistance