Guest guest Posted May 12, 2000 Report Share Posted May 12, 2000 ===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list ===== FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE -- Sekiu, WA: 9:00pm PDT No hunting today: Bad weather has set in again, although forecasters call for improved weather by the weekend. Let's all hope for high seas, strong winds and lots of rain! Visit http://www.stopwhalekill.org for the latest info! ***** FROM PROGRESSIVE ANIMAL WELFARE SOCIETY -------------------------------- NEWS RELEASE MAY 11, 2000 U.S. AND MAKAH TRIBE VIOLATE MANAGEMENT PLAN Feeding Resident Whales Targeted In a letter to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) today charged the Makah tribe and the National Marine Fisheries Service with violating a Management Plan signed by the two governments on how to conduct the killing of gray whales In a marine sanctuary. The Agreement specifies that, " Whaling permits shall be issued with the intent of targeting migrating whales. " PAWS Advocacy Department Director Will Anderson has been at sea documenting the Makah hunt efforts. He has personally observed the plumes of sediment related to gray whale feeding which is inconsistent with migratory behavior. Research data indicates most, if not all, of the truly migratory males have already passed by Washington. Remaining are the residents and offshore females with calves. Said Anderson, " That harassment is illegal as the agreement calls for the Makah to avoid hunting and killing resident whales. The five days of the hunt has resulted in every visible resident whale being chased repeatedly. Excessive use of a powerboat to tow the whaling canoe each time they see a whale surface has created this large-scale impact. The Makah have not made an effort to whale further offshore as their ancestors did where resident whales are less likely to be. " PAWS has long held that the Makah hunt is illegal since the US government claimed the IWC approved a quota for the Makah. " I was there in Monaco, " said Anderson. " After the Makah quota was soundly rejected the year before at the IWC meeting in Scotland, the US brokered an illegal exchange of five endangered bowhead whales given to Russia for the Makah quota. The Makah have never, and still do not, meet the criteria that allow whaling under aboriginal rules. " The IWC requires a subsistence need that the Makah cannot demonstrate. Instead the US government unilaterally created a new " cultural " category of whaling in its domestic whaling regulations (CFR, Part 230), long desired by commercial " cultural " whalers. " There is a long list of illegal and questionable acts in the administration of this hunt, " Anderson continued. " Now even humpback calves are being killed in the Caribbean and no one fears retaliation because the U.S. moral authority and transparent double standards have corrupted our leadership on whale protection. " " The Makah do not seem to be giving due consideration to their widespread impacts on resident whales, agreements made or their international impacts on whaling, " continued Anderson. " Last year, the Makah killed the whale equivalent of a female child less than three years old. That whale was curious and looked up without fear as the Makah let loose with their harpoon and .50 caliber anti-tank gun. Where is the honor in that? " he concluded. ***** FROM WORLD WHALE POLICE --------------------- MAKAH GRAY WHALE HUNT ACTION ALERT !!! In discussion with various gray whale experts and whale watching companies along the Oregon, Washington and Vancouver Island coasts, we have been advised that the migration of the gray whales is 90% complete. This would leave primarily only suckling calves, females accompanied by calves and resident whales in the hunting area off the Makah reservation at Neah Bay, Washington. This in mind, it is curious why NMFS is not making any statements about the end of the migration or the restrictions on hunting the remaining whales. Please write, or call NMFS and ask the following questions: 1. What is the criteria for determining the " official " end of the gray whale migration off Washington State? 2. What are the NOAA representatives observing the hunt doing to ensure that the Makah are not targeting residents, suckling calves, females accompanied by calves or resident whales? (Which is prohibited in the agreement between the Makah whalers and NMFS) 3. Are the NOAA observing rep's checking the harpoon each time it is thrown to determine if there has been a strike to a whale? (The Management plan indicates that if the harpoon strikes a whale and falls out the permit is no longer valid) 4. What is the position of NMFS that the Makah are now saying publically that all whales are migratory and insinuating that there are no residents? Note: We have not seen any evidence that NMFS is evaluating any strikes or moving in as the harpoon is raised to determine if they are hunting babies. On a number of occasions the Makah have chased down and thrown a harpoon at whales that were smaller than the hunting canoe. Please contact Donna Wieting of the National Marine Fisheries Service at: HQTR Route: F/PR2 BLDG: SSMC3 RM: 13142 1315 EAST-WEST HWY SILVER SPRING MD 20910-3282 PH: (301) 713-2322 x108 FAX: (301) 713-0376 Internet Address: Donna.Wieting For further information please do not hesitate to contact us at: Julie Woodyer or Bill Moss Land line: (360) 963-0717 Cell: (360) 561-7492 Cell: (416) 451-5976 E-Mail: whalesavers ***** EYE-OPENER OF THE WEEK --------------- " People tend to give Al Gore the benefit of the doubt. They assume that anybody so dull and awkward must at least be upright and honest. Big mistake. In the current issue of National Review, that magazine's superb national political correspondent John J. Miller documents 40 bold and brazen lies told by Al Gore over his long political career. (The on-line edition, www.nationalreview.com, presents a 41st.) " David Frum National Post ***** QUOTE OF THE DECADE --------------- " What we have done to the great whales in the sacred name of commerce is an affront to human dignity, a debasement of human values and sensibility. In the light of present knowledge of these intelligent mammals, no civilized person can contemplate the whaling industry without revulsion and shame at the insensitivity of our own species. " Sir Peter Scott, from address to the International Whaling Commission, London, July 1979 ***** _______________ The simple way to read all your emails at ThatWeb http://www.thatweb.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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