Posts Tagged ‘Japan’
Day Five of IWC 2016
Agenda Item 19 Finance and Administration The meeting opens slightly late due to technical difficulties. Bruno: regarding yesterday’s Agenda, I forgot to confirm that all delegates are happy for the Commission to endorse cooperation with other organisations? (General assent). Also apologizes to IGO/NGOs that he was ‘a little too fast’ in closing yesterday. The Chair…
Read MoreWDC briefs IWC Commissioners on whale meat discovery
Days before The 66th meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) opened in Slovenia, we exposed the illegal sale of canned whale products by Japanese online company, Japan Trend Shop, to overseas customers, including in the UK, EU and USA. The shop’s website promises worldwide express shipping, incredibly even telling buyers ‘If you still have some environmental…
Read MoreDay Four of IWC 2016
As we mentioned yesterday, this is not a complete transcript but is intended to give a brief overview on the day’s discussions. This is especially true today, when there was a break in the transmission from the meeting due to technical problems, so there may be gaps, for which we are sorry. For the really…
Read MoreDay Three (afternoon) of IWC 2016
Agenda Item 10 Cetacean Habitat 10.1 State of Cetacean Environment (SOCER) The Chair of the IWC Scientific Committee, Caterina, highlights elements of the Franciscana Action Plan. The Committee recommends that the stabilisation of the Brazilian dam is urgent and highlighted the critical need to adopt knowledge from disasters, such as deep–water accidents and to share…
Read MoreDay Three (Morning) of IWC 2016
This is not a full script, as whilst some comments are verbatim, others are paraphrased, but we endeavour to capture the essence of what was said. The morning shift So back to it, and the Chairman is asking for progress from drafting groups. Japan opened the meeting rather aggressively in the view of this observer,…
Read MoreDay Two of IWC 2016
This is meant as a brief update on progress and hurdles this morning at IWC66 in Slovenia. We shall update when we get another gap between sessions. IWC66/09 South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary The day started badly for the whales when the Schedule Amendment that would have established the South Atlantic Sanctuary (#SAWS) was defeated with…
Read MoreDenmark: Wanting their whale and eating it
So Denmark has submitted its opening statement to the IWC and I guess the question is, have they learned their lesson since the last meeting? One reading of the statement would suggest that Denmark wants to ‘have their cake’, and, as the old saying goes, quite literally, ‘eat it’. I asked in a previous post…
Read MoreIWC Heroes and Villains
Since the early 1990s accusations have been levelled against the Government of Japan that it was linking its overseas development aid (ODA) to the recruitment of other nation states to support its campaign for a resumption of commercial whaling. Watching the voting patterns of the various Parties, a neutral observer new to the International Whaling…
Read MoreIllegal sale of Japanese whale meat exposed by WDC on eve of international whaling meeting
UPDATE! (Weds 19.10.2016) WDC today discovered that whale meat was recently available on eBay US, where a can of Kinoya Canned Rare Sunoko Whale Meat was on offer for $45 including shipping. The listing was ended by the seller on 06 October 2016 as “the item is no longer available”. It is currently unclear what…
Read MoreWhen is a whaling ban not a whaling ban?
The International Whaling Commission (IWC) biennial meeting is never a simple place to negotiate your way through. I had the privilege of attending several meetings during my WDC career, and the team we are sending this year will be some of our best brains. And this year we need the team to be on top…
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