International Whaling Commission: 54th
meeting, Shimonoseki, Japan
Opening statement by the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland
005/02
20 May 2002
The United Kingdom Government is pleased to participate in the 54th annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission, and is grateful for the hospitality extended by our hosts, the Government of Japan. We would also like to thank all those whose effort and hard work has made the meeting possible and in particular the Mayor and people of Shimonoseki who have shown great warmth and kindness.
The Commission has a heavy responsibility to safeguard the future of all cetaceans. Our overriding hope is that this Commission continues to work to ensure that the appalling mistakes of the past, when over hunting resulted in the near extinction of many whale species, are avoided. The majority of world public opinion expects nothing less than this and will judge the Commission and Contracting Governments accordingly. Though there has been some improvement in a few whale stocks since the moratorium, most have not recovered. Furthermore, there is still a significant degree of uncertainty about numbers in the remaining stocks. For example, IWC scientists are unable to explain the significant decline in the abundance estimates of minke whales in the Southern Ocean. Scientists have warned that all cetaceans increasingly face environmental and other natural threats, the long-term effects of which are unclear. Such threats could not have been anticipated when the IWC was formed. The present level of uncertainty effectively precludes any decision to allow a resumption of commercial whaling.
It is against this background that the UK will work in the Commission to improve the conservation of whales, and reinforce the IWC's international strategic role in protecting cetaceans. We recognise, however, that the IWC has the challenging task of making positive progress on a number of issues. To achieve this will require participation and co-operation from all sides, a true commitment to negotiation and willingness to compromise.
We deeply regret, therefore, that some countries have continued their whaling activities, and even increased them, despite the moratorium. For the third consecutive year a significant number of members of the Commission, including the UK, presented a high-level demarche rejecting a unilateral scientific research programme by one particular Contracting Government and calling upon that Government to abandon this programme. We are particularly concerned that new whale species have been targeted, using spurious "scientific" arguments which have not been endorsed by the IWC Scientific Committee; the demarche also called upon the Government concerned to abide by IWC decisions which consistently denied its requests for commercial quotas for small-type coastal whaling communities.
The UK Government will strongly support and encourage conservation measures including proposals submitted for the establishment of sanctuaries in the South Atlantic and the South Pacific. These will provide opportunities for long-term, non-lethal research. We will also resist any moves to abolish existing sanctuaries as these have been legitimately established under the Convention. The UK will continue to promote well-regulated whale watching as the only truly sustainable use of whales.
We will continue to express concerns at the cruel manner in which whales and small cetaceans are killed, often with inadequate or no regulation, with little regard to stocks and often against scientific advice. Therefore, we will seek improvements in the regulation and humaneness of all types of whaling, and look forward to constructive discussion on whale killing methods. The UK welcomes the continued focus on environmental issues, particularly on assessing the long-term threats posed to cetacean populations by pollution and environmental change. The current scientific uncertainties should demand appropriate priority and resources in this area.
We are deeply disappointed that Iceland has again sought to rejoin the IWC with a reservation to the moratorium. The UK and a significant number of IWC members have already expressed their opposition to this reservation on the grounds that it runs counter to decisions made in both IWC and CITES. The UK will welcome Iceland into the IWC when she chooses to join without conditions.
In the past 12 months the UK has played a full and active part in discussions on the Revised Management Scheme (RMS) which we consider must provide no lesser controls and supervision as exists in many other international fisheries organisations. Our input continues to be on the basis that, should commercial whaling ever resume, strong management and enforcement measures must be in place. This does not lessen the UK's strong commitment to the maintenance of the moratorium.
The UK will play a full and constructive role at this meeting to help the Commission meet the legitimate expectations of world public opinion.
Page published: 20 May 2002