Saving whales in Korea

KFEM has recently launched its own domestic campaign to oppose all forms of whaling, and its 52 local offices are busy working to raise awareness on the issues that surround the plight of whales and other ocean life.

Together, we aim to jointly inform the Korean public and government that whales in Korean waters are some of the most threatened in the world and, like all whales, are in need of urgent protection.

The Rainbow Warrior was greeted by an incredible spectacle: a percussion band, a Buddhist monk, Korean Environment Minister Mr Kwak Kyeoul Ho, Korean women in traditional dress who danced a welcome and children who presented the crew with "I love whales" t-shirts.

While Korea has no official whaling programme, if a whale or dolphin is found dead in a fishing net, it can be sold on the open market for huge prices - in 2004 the average price paid for a mature minke whale was US$100 000. It is perhaps no coincidence therefore, that Korea has some of the highest cetacean bycatch incidents in the world, second only to Japan.

Two marine biologists aboard the Rainbow Warrior will conduct a whale survey from Incheon to the southern island of Cheju, to document the decline in whale populations and sound a warning bell against a return to commercial whaling.

Also aboard will be Greenpeace cyberactivist Yewon Kim, a member of our online community who has volunteered to keep a weblog aboard the ship to relate her experience in Korean.

It is not commonly known in Korea that whales are under threat or that they are anything other than 'big fish.' It is vital that we raise awareness before this year's International Whaling Commission meeting, scheduled to take place in Ulsan, an old whaling port in the southeast. The meeting is already being widely publicized in Korea with billboard advertisements across Seoul.

The International Whaling Commission voted in 1985 to place a moratorium on commercial whaling. That moratorium has been under concerted attack by Japan and other whaling nations for several years now. Votes for and against the moratorium are neck and neck. If Korea sides with the whaling lobby this year, as it has done in the past, it could mean the resumption of whaling worldwide. We are calling for the Korean government to 'vote for whales, not whaling' at the IWC in June, and by doing so, send out a clear message to the world that they are serious about the protecting the whales and the health of the oceans that they inhabit.

Korean waters were traditionally home to dolphins, finless porpoises, humpback whales, orcas, minkes and the Western Pacific or 'Korean' Gray whales – the most endangered whale species in the world, whose population numbers only 100 of which only 25 are reproductive females.

There are also many in Korea, especially in the southeast, who would like to see a return to whaling, and with a whale processing infrastructure and appetite for whalemeat already in place, the Korean government could conceivably announce a plan to take up 'scientific' whaling.

Under a loophole in International Whaling Commission rules, the killing of whales for research purposes is allowed, and Japan, Norway, and Iceland currently use 'scientific' whaling programmes to produce whalemeat in commercial quantities.

Over the next few weeks, we'll be providing more information and action opportunities by which you can help ensure Korea doesn't return to whaling. Our campaigners, crew, marine biologists, and cyberactivist Yewon Kim will be keeping a weblog of their experiences.

Take action

Yewon Kim ended up on a Greenpeace ship because she signed up as a Greenpeace Cyberactivist. If you'd like to be a part of Greenpeace's online community, register here. It's free! You'll get a a monthly e-zine chock full of things to do to help our planet, plus a free homepage. You'll also be able to exchange views with other members at our cybercentre's online message board. In the past, cyberactivists have travelled to the Amazon, China, and Iceland to help us with our campaign work. You may be next. Register today.