Anchorage, Alaska, United States —
Thousands of people in dozens of countries marched today to call for whale protection as the International Whaling Commission (IWC) starts its annual meeting, part of Greenpeace’s "Big Blue March" taking place in over 50 cities. In Anchorage, venue for the IWC meeting, the parade was led by whale campaigners, "Heroes" star Hayden Panettiere, Stephen Colletti, host of MTV’s "Total Request Live," Esai Morales of "NYPD Blue" and the Save the Whales Again campaign, Australian surfer Dave Rastovich and artist Howie Cooke. The march ended with a human aerial art event in downtown Anchorage, the culmination of a series of art events which began in Mexico last week.
“The fact that so many people across the globe have come together in a common cause is a loud and clear warning to the Commissioners in Alaska that they must not fail the whales.” Greenpeace International Executive Director, Gerd Leipold commented from the Buenos Aires march in Argentina.
Caught in nets, hit by ships, choked on plastic bags, poisoned by pollution and starved because of changes in food supply due to the impacts of global warming – hundreds of thousands of whales die every year in the oceans. Over the coming week, IWC delegates from more than seventy nations will spend only a couple of hours discussing these threats, and the rest of the meeting debating how, where and why to hunt whales, whether under the guise of science or simply against the regulations of the Commission.
“With so many other factors impacting whale populations worldwide, it is incredible that the IWC is still entertaining the idea of debating commercial whaling,” said Karen Sack, Greenpeace USA whales project leader, who is attending the IWC meeting. “The IWC delegates need to make a commitment this year to modernize the Commission, seriously address the increasing range of threats to whales, and become a body that works for the whales and not the whalers.”
The IWC meeting runs from May 28th – 31st.
