===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list ===== FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- We are receiving a staggering number of request from citizens wishing to contact their representatives in Congress about the outrageous Makah whale hunt. To contact your representative and senator, please follow these links: http://www.hsus.org/forms/search_reps.html or http://www.berkshire.net/~ifas/activist or http://www.popularis.com Remember, these people work for YOU! ***** CONGRESSMAN METCALF TO ATTEND SEATTLE VIGIL ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Congressman Jack Metcalf (R-WA), will be attending a vigil in front of the Federal Building in Seattle tonight. Seattle-area residents! Please spread the word and plan on attending! Sea Shepherd and the Sea Defense Alliance will also be holding a vigil/bonfire at Olson's Resort in Sekiu this evening. Times and places: SEATTLE: Front of the Federal Building - 7:00 pm. Contact PAWS for information: (425) 787-2500 SEKIU: Olson's Resort - 7:00 pm. Contact SEDNA for information: (360) 963-2538. ***** LOCAL MEDIA REFUSES TO COVER MAKAH BUTCHERY ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seattle-area television stations are refusing to extend their coverage when the Makah finally beach the gray whale they shot earlier. Apparently, the reality of the butchery is not part of the Seattle media's "unbiased" coverage of the Makah hunt. The key stations involved are: Northwest Cable News (206) 448-3600 KING-5 (206) 448-3850 KING-5 FAX (206) 448-4525 ***** FROM SEA SHEPHERD CONSERVATION SOCIETY ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 17, 1999 MAKAH KILL A WHALE, U.S. BRINGS BACK COMMERCIAL WHALING "Look forward to selling whale burgers," says tribe MAY 17 -- By virtue of the U.S. Coast Guard having seized virtually all the boats of whale activists who had effectively protected migrating whales from the assault of would-be whale hunters in Washington state since last October, the Makah Indian tribe finally managed to kill a whale shortly Before 7 o'clock this morning. Television news coverage cut away as the helpless whale was repeatedly harpooned and shot in order to spare viewers the sight of a whale in its death throes. Sea Shepherd's patrol boat Sirenian had gone to the San Juan Islands to refuel and pick up other vessels on Sunday night. To evade activists, the Makah went out on an early outgoing tide. Sea Shepherd has filed a request of the Coast Guard to determine the whale's size and whether it was lactating. "People are starting to grasp the absolute tragedy of what is happening here," said Sea Shepherd International Director Lisa Distefano. "As in the commercial whaling era of 100 years ago, technology wedded to the profit motive will again speed the whales toward extinction." Sea Shepherd notes the zealous and enthusiastic cooperation of the U.S. Coast Guard and federal agencies in the whale hunt, including grants and indirect subsidies of over one million dollars in U.S. taxpayer funds to the Makah Whaling Commission. "Today, with speed boats, military weaponry and the draconian assistance of the U.S. government in stifling all dissent, American whalers managed to blast a whale out of existence in American waters on the pretext of cultural privilege," said Paul Watson, President of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. "A tribe that has made no secret of its intention to return to commercial whaling has brought the United States and all its citizens one giant unwilling step closer to the day when the wholesale slaughter of whales for profit will be permitted within the coastal waters of every nation. "As far as we're concerned, Vice President Al Gore and the U.S. Coast Guard got their whale." Sea Shepherd and other whale protection advocates will now prevail upon Congress to amend the 1855 treaty with the Makah in order to bring it into compliance with current international conservation regulations. The International Whaling Commission will be pressed to right the wrong the Clinton administration has permitted within U.S. waters before additional offenses can occur. "The implications of this act must now be dealt with by the infractions committee of the IWC," said Watson. "They must also deal with the sleight-of-hand trick by which the U.S. administration gave a subsistence whaling quota to a tribe that does not meet the IWC criteria for aboriginal subsistence whaling. Without such recognition, under U.S. federal law, the Makah cannot hunt whales." The U.S. has opened itself up to a number of legal issues. Activists cite the Coast Guard's highly selective enforcement of a "exclusionary zone," cited as a safety precaution but which allowed the boats of other Indian tribes into the hunt area and keep protesters out as a clear First Amendment violation. The fact that the Coast Guard allowed the use of heavy weapons by members of a whaling crew that had largely failed a drug test, the extreme likelihood that the whale killed was a nursing mother -- a violation of the Makah's management agreement with the National Marine Fisheries Service -- and the violation of the U.S. Whaling Convention Act are just some of the legal dilemmas now facing the federal government. Additionally, Seattle media reported today that Makah reservation restaurants have said they are looking forward to selling whale burgers - another violation of their "subsistence" whale hunt exemption. "This is a precedent that must not be allowed to stand," said Distefano. "We hope that environmental organizations that have chosen to remain uninvolved up to this point, along with the American public, will wake up to the reality of what their government is subsidizing in their name." Sea Shepherd and the Washington Citizens Coastal Alliance will shortly announce a boycott of tourism and all products of the Makah and allied Washington state tribes for as long as the Makah persist in hunting whales. ===================================== Sea Shepherd Conservation Society P.O. Box 628 Venice, CA. 90294 USA e-mail: seashepherd@seashepherd.org Web Site: http://www.seashepherd.org Tel: 310-301-SEAL(7325) Canada: 604-688-7325 Fax: 310-574-3161 ===================================== ***** FROM BREACH MARINE PROTECTION ----------------------------------------------------------- MARK THIS DAY, 17 MAY 1999. At approximately 6:55am PDT, Makah whalers harpooned, then shot to death, a California Gray Whale in the waters of the Olympic National Marine Sanctuary. The whale struggled to escape, leaving a trail of blood in the water, then died. The 'Sirenian' of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society arrived on scene several minutes later, after an all-night effort in Friday Harbor to load and transport several small boats to the area. At this time, you may contact the Seattle-area media covering the hunt live with your feelings. Northwest Cable News (206) 448-3600 KING-5 (206) 448-3850 KING-5 FAX (206) 448-4525 LATEST NEWS, AFTERNOON 17 MAY --------------------------- (And the Makah said they trained for this?) The Makah whalers are experiencing some difficulty in bringing the whale they killed to shore. Although successful in killing the whale, the whalers were not successful in preventing the whale from sinking to the bottom of the sea. At last report, the Makah have called in several large commercial fishing boats to help them raise the whale from the bottom of the sea, 300 feet down. As of 12:05pm PDT, they have apparently raised it to the surface. 'Sirenian' remains on scene, documenting the hunt and associated activities. THIS IS WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF THIS CRAZINESS IS NOT STOPPED --------------------------------------------- The owner of a restaurant in Neah Bay is proclaiming that they can not wait to begin serving "whale burgers." It is ironic that the Makah have always denied a commerical interest in killing a gray whale, yet are already planning on how to sell it before they can even bring it onshore! ***** WORLD WHALE POLICE AND SEDNA JOIN FORCES ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Moss, head of the World Whale Police, announces he is joining forces with the Sea Defense Alliance, whose boats were confiscated by the U.S. Coast Guard over the past week while preventing the Makah whaling crew from killing a whale. The WWP boat has been out of action the past few days due to a cracked intake manifold, but the part is on the way, and they expect to be seaworthy and on patrol by Wednesday morning. WWP is appealing to all for donations. The expense of repairing the WWP "Tiger" as well as fuel costs have nearly depleted the funds available to his organization. Those who can help are encouraged to contact the Sea Defense Alliance. Contributions can be earmarked for the World Whale Police. Call (360) 963-2538 for credit card donations. ***** VIGILS PLANNED IN WASHINGTON STATE TONIGHT ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and the Sea Defense Alliance announce that simultaneous vigils will be held tonight to demonstrate outrage at the Makah hunt, as well as to honor the whale that was executed by federally-funded Makah whalers. Times and places: SEATTLE: Front of the Federal Building - 7:00 pm. Contact PAWS for information: (425) 787-2500 SEKIU: Olson's Resort - 7:00 pm. Contact SEDNA for information: (360) 963-2538. All people are encouraged to attend and show their opposition and outrage! ***** YOU CAN HELP ------------------------ We are asking all of you to call your respective Congressional representative and Senator. They work for US, and its time to make our voices heard! Remember, only Congress has the power to change Indian treaties. With enough voices, we can get the whaling clause stricken from the Makah treaty! To find you representatives, go to: http://www.hsus.org/forms/search_reps.html or http://www.berkshire.net/~ifas/activist or http://www.popularis.com ***** STATEMENT FROM CONGRESSMAN JACK METCALF (R-WA) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- May 17, 1999 "I was deeply disturbed to learn that the Makah tribe killed a grey whale this morning. These majestic, intelligent creatures deserve better than to be brutally slughtered as pawns in a political game being orchestrated by Japanese and Norwegian whaling interests, and supported by the Clinton/Gore administration. The untold story is that today, the Japanese and Norwegians have been successful in destroying the United States' position as the leading anti-whaling voice. The outlaw whaling nations of Japan and Norway, reckless in their disregard for marine conservation, have supported this hunt with financial and technical means. Today's hunt is a victory for Japan and Norway and ultimately a loss for the people of the Makah tribe and America as a whole." ******