Rudd government moves to protect whales
Greenpeace welcomes the announcement today by Environment Minister Peter Garrett and Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith of the range of measures being taken to protect whales in the Southern Ocean from whaling. The increased diplomatic pressure will be useful but Greenpeace urges the government to take immediate action under the International Convention for Endangered Species.”
„The government can take immediate steps to protect Australia’s $300million whale watching industry by lodging a protest to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to protest Japan’s proposed killing of humpbacks,” said Greenpeace CEO Steve Shallhorn in Canberra today.
„Any humpback whale meat landed in Japan will be illegal under the CITES convention,” said Shallhorn. „Humpback whales are listed under Appendix 1 of CITES, which does not allow trade for commercial purposes in products from protected species.”
„Greenpeace is pleased that the Rudd Government has met the commitments they took to the election by dispatching aerial surveillance and sending the Oceanic Viking to monitor the whaling fleet activities in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary,” said Steve Shallhorn
„The Oceanic Viking is an ice-class vessel with a crew experienced at working in Antarctic conditions and is fully equipped with surveillance gear.”
„We expect the crew to fulfil their mission peacefully.” continued Shallhorn. „However Greenpeace is concerned at the limited length of time of the surveillance, as the whalers will be active right through until March or April. The longer they are under scrutiny, the less likely they are to take endangered fins or humpbacks and may stop whaling altogether.”
„Greenpeace also supports the increased diplomatic pressure being placed on the Japanese government by appointing a diplomatic whales envoy in Tokyo, lodging a formal protest with the Japanese government and increasing the Australian government’s activities in the International Whaling Commission.”
The Greenpeace ship Esperanza is currently heading south of New Zealand to defend more than a thousand whales. The Japanese whaling fleet is determined to kill upt to 935 minke whales, 50 endangered fin whales, and for the first time in 40 years, 50 threatened humpbacks in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary this summer.
