Media release
19 June 2010
Environment Protection Minister Peter Garrett
said today that the 2010 annual meeting
of the International Whaling Commission
could well be the single most important
meeting of the IWC since it voted to establish
a moratorium on commercial whaling in 1982.
Leaving Australia today
to attend the meeting in Agadir, Morocco,
Minister Garrett said he would be working
hard to reach an agreement that protects
whales and ensures that the gains made in
whale conservation since that time are not
wound back.
"At next week's
meeting the IWC will consider a proposal
by the Chairs to allow limited commercial
whaling, giving Iceland, Japan and Norway
the green light to hunt almost 13,000 whales
over the next 10 years," Mr Garrett
said.
"This proposal
would also sanction the killing of whales
in the IWC whale sanctuary in the Southern
Ocean and also allow threatened species
to be killed.
"This proposal
is deeply unbalanced in favour of whaling
nations and will not result in a reformed
conservation focused organisation.
"Quite simply,
Australia will not be voting for a bad deal
for whales and I will be prepared to work
as long and as hard as necessary to ensure
that the moratorium on commercial whaling
does not end up in tatters on the Commission
floor.
"A bad deal driven
through the Commission on a split vote is
unlikely to achieve reform or a reconciliation
between IWC members. We will be working
closely with conservation-minded countries,
including countries from Europe and Latin
America, New Zealand, the United States
and others, to achieve an outcome that genuinely
improves protection for whales globally.
"Australia's own
proposal for IWC reform seeks nine key improvements
to the Chairs' plan, including an end to
so-called 'scientific' whaling, an end to
Southern Ocean whaling and whaling on vulnerable
species, and the rigorous use of science.
"Our vision for
the future of the IWC is one where the body
will play a key role in the conservation
and protection of the species.
"I will be going
to the IWC meeting with the intention of
securing our objectives and I will be actively
and constructively participating at the
meeting in pursuit of a diplomatic solution.
"Whilst in Agadir
I will be meeting with my Ministerial counterparts,
including New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray
McCully and UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary
of State Richard Benyon to discuss how best
to progress our shared objectives for whale
conservation.
"The Australian
delegation will continue to engage with
all IWC member nations to convince the three
remaining whaling nations-Japan, Norway
and Iceland-that whale watching, not whale
hunting is the way of the future,"
Mr Garrett said.
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Minister welcomes developments
at IWC 62
Media release
23 June 2010
Environment Protection Minister Peter Garrett
today welcomed developments in the International
Whaling Commission meeting in Morocco to
abandon a compromise plan that would have
seen the end of the moratorium on commercial
whaling.
“Lifting the moratorium
on commercial whaling would have been a
serious and retrograde step. That is why
Australia has fought so hard against this
proposal, along with many like-minded, pro
conservation nations both in the lead up
to the IWC and here on the floor of the
Commission.
“It is now time to close
the door on that proposal and move forward,
whilst building on the increased understanding
that has emerged from these processes.
“The IWC may be grappling
with serious and contentious issues but
the Commission still stands as the primary
international body with the responsibility
to conserve and manage cetaceans.
“We believe now is the
time for the IWC to embrace a new vision
for the IWC working cooperatively to improve
the conservation of the world’s whales and
I have today set out some important areas
where this can work can begin immediately,
including in the area of governance to ensure
transparency and enhance accountability.
“Australia will continue
to work hard advocating our pro-conservation
agenda throughout the remainder of this
important IWC meeting,” Mr Garrett said
