===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list ===== FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Folks, your calls are having an effect. Politicians are getting a LOT of pressure to take a stand on this issue, and those that are against the hunt are being urged to take ACTION and prevent this atrocity from being committed again! Redouble your efforts, keep the calls coming in, and give the people responsible for this outrage a piece of your mind! We are entering a tension-filled weekend here in Washington state. The Makah whale killers have invited a large number of Native American tribes from all corners of the continent to visit and show their support. If you're like us, you feel this is a slap in the face to those of us still in shock and mourning at the outrageous murder of the baby gray whale last weekend by the Makah. To make matters worse, the Makah are proudly announcing that "whale meat" is on the menu. However, we encourage you all to channel your anger into POSITIVE ways of making permanent changes so this can be stopped permanently. When you start feeling angry, call your congressman! Then tell Al Gore what you think of his whale-killing policy... To find your representatives, go to: http://www.hsus.org/forms/search_reps.html or http://www.berkshire.net/~ifas/activist or http://www.popularis.com Al Gore, the man who must take responsibility for his whale-killing policies, can be reached at: Vice President Al Gore (202) 456-1111 "GORE 2000" Telephone: (202) 263-6000 Ask him how he enjoyed the taxpayer-funded hunt! ***** PORT ANGELES RALLY NEWS ----------------------------------------------- The Peninsula Citizens for the Protection of Whales were well-represented at the Clallam County (Whaling Capital USA) Courthouse this afternoon. Sea Defense Alliance members Jacob Conroy and Joshua Harper were arraigned on gross misdemeanor charges, and released without bail. The good people of the Olympic peninsula made their presence known, marching down the main street and displaying signs, banners and t-shirts opposing the hunt. County Attorney Chris Shea expressed his concern over the way tensions on the peninsula were spiraling out of control. PCPW spokesman Chuck Owens spoke afterwards. Here is the text of his statement: A STATEMENT FROM THE PENINSULA CITIZENS FOR THE PROTECTION OF WHALES Regarding the arraignment of Joshua Harper and Jacob Conroy "These two young heroes came to our peninsula and did what local politicians refused to do- stand up to our federal government and the Makah nation. These heroes put their bodies between an anti-tank weapon and whale after whale after whale. Our city and county officials would not even put this issue on their agenda for discussion, let alone pass a resolution against the atrocities we have all witnessed. I am now asking publicly that these same politicians come out in support of these young heroes and condemn the Clinton-Gore administration and the Makah nation for that they have done both to our hearts and our once unbloodied shores. We demand that all charges be dropped and all boats returned to their rightful owners. The only criminal activities that have taken place this last year were committed by our federal government, the U.S. Coast Guard, the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Makah Nation." Chuck Owens, director Peninsula Citizens for the Protection of Whales Port Angeles, WA (Note: Letters to the editor at the 'Peninsula Daily News' in Port Angeles are running 10 to 1 against the Makah. Where are you, Congressman Norm Dicks? The people are speaking- do you intend to LISTEN?) ***** FROM SEA SHEPHERD CONSERVATION SOCIETY ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- SEA SHEPHERD BACKS LAND/WHALES SWAP FOR MAKAH TRIBE May 20, 1999 Congress urged to trade former tribal lands for whale hunting treaty clause The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a leading opponent of the whale hunt of the Makah Indian tribe of Washington state, has proposed a solution to the controversy whereby former tribal lands would be returned to the Makah in exchange for a Congressional amendment to the clause in their 1855 treaty permitting whale hunting. The proposal, delivered to over two dozen members of Congress who are on record as opposing the Makah hunt, comes in the wake of a recently negotiated agreement between the Timbesha Shoshone tribe of Southern California and the Department of the Interior. The agreement gives back to the tribe several hundred acres of traditional tribal land in Death Valley National Park and broad management powers over 300,000 acres of parkland. "The Makah have long been interested in recovering tribal lands that were ceded to the U.S. as part of the treaty that codified the Makah's alleged right of whaling," said Sea Shepherd President Paul Watson. "A five-mile stretch of beach between the southern edge of the main reservation and the traditional Makah village of Ozette is now part of Olympic National Park. A three-mile strip south of Ozette is the site of historically significant Makah petroglyphs." The Makah Tribal Council, in response to several previous overtures to provide economic aid and help establish a whale watching industry on the reservation if the tribe forswears a whale hunt, has routinely replied that "our treaty rights are not for sale." "The agreement reached last February between the Shoshone and the National Park Service in Death Valley has set a precedent," said Sea Shepherd International Director Lisa Distefano. "No one can perceive giving land back to an Indian tribe in exchange for amending one line in the document by which they were forced to cede that land to the U.S. in the first place as constituting the 'sale' of treaty rights. "This would resolve the legal dilemma posed by perceived U.S. treaty obligations to the Makah and the obligation to uphold current conservation law under the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. To avoid being sued by an Indian tribe, the federal government has desperately tried to pretend that the Makah can go whaling without violating the aboriginal subsistence requirement of the International Whaling Commission and the U.S. Whaling Convention Act, but they can't have it both ways. This is their way out." Sea Shepherd has also filed a "friend of the court" brief in the appeal of the lawsuit filed by Congressman Jack Metcalf (R-Wash.), Australians for Animals, and Breach Marine Protection to halt the Makah hunt seeking to strike down the Makah's hunting permit. For text of proposal and list of U.S. reps. opposed to Makah whale hunt CONTACT: Paul Watson Lisa Distefano 310-301-7325 MEMBERS OF U.S. CONGRESS OPPOSING THE MAKAH WHALE HUNT Neil Abercrombie (D-HI) Gary L. Ackerman (D-NY) James E. Clyburn (D-SC) William D. Delahunt (D-MA) Phil English (R-PA) Lane Evans (D-IL) Sam Farr (D-CA) Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) Peter A DeFazio (D-OR) Ralph M. Hall (D-TX) Duncan Hunter (R-CA) Sue W. Kelly (R-NY) John Lewis (D-GA) Jack Metcalf (R-WA) Nita M. Lowey (D-NY) Carolyn B. Maloney (D-CT) George Miller (D-CA) Constance A. Morella (R-MD) Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Christopher Shays (R-CT) Fortney Pete Stark (D-CA) Todd Tiahrt (R-KS) Bruce F. Vento (D-MN) Robert Wexler (D-FL) Albert Russell Wynn (D-MD) Lynn C. Woolsey (D-CA) ===================================== 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 ===================================== ALSO... All people of conscience mourn the passing of _ya vis_ (beloved), Brutally taken from us and from the tribe of the Gray whale on May 17 last The People of the Pacific Northwest and all friends of the whales Are invited to a land-based protest and a Memorial service on the water. We will be on Neah Bay on Saturday, May 22 Flotilla departing Sekiu at 10:00 a.m. from Olsen's Marina For directions, call: (360) 963-2311 ***** TALKSPOT ---------------- There is an online poll at http://www.talkspot.com regarding the Makah atrocity. You can also find streaming audio interviews about the Makah whale killing at that web-site. Go and register you vote! ***** FOR ALL OUR CANADIAN FRIENDS ------------------------------------------------------ These fine people are the folks you see almost continuously in Neah Bay. They are here to help Canadians speak out effectively, and we encourage you to contact them! The West Coast Anti-Whaling Society needs your help. We are based out of Victoria, BC on Vancouver Island. Last fall we spent 57 days at and near Neah Bay to protect the grey whales from the whalers. We are a volunteer organization which is funded entirely by private donations. Unfortunately, the Government of Canada does not see our work as charitable, thus we are unable to offer tax deductible reciepts. These kind donations have enabled us to run whale protection campaigns using borrowed high speed whale watching zodiacs. As these boats are now working for the summer we are trying to raise enough money to buy a boat of our own. We have many experienced crew members who are willing to donate time to continue our whale protection program. Our goal is to protect the whales from whalers both physically on the water and politically in the government. Our work on the water is only one component of our work. We are also working to have British Columbian waters declared a marine sanctuary for whales, thus effectively destroying any whaling interests on the island. There are strong interests for whaling with the Nuu-chah-nulth people on Vancouver Island. Tom Happynook, the hereditary whaling chief of the Nuu-chah-nulth, is also the president of the World Council of Whalers. An interesting and frightening association. The West Coast Anti-Whaling Society has only one goal -- to stop any return to whaling on the west coast of Washington and British Columbia. Please help us help the whales!. http://www.anti-whaling.com ***** CANADIANS CONTINUE TO SPEAK OUT ------------------------------------------------------------- Angry Canadians protested the Clinton/Gore-sponsored whale killing in front of the American consulate in Vancouver, B.C. today. B.C. Premier Glenn Clark again reiterated his strong statement that "no whaling by aboriginal people" will be allowed in British Columbia. (CHEK-TV) ***** FROM WORLD WHALE POLICE ----------------------------------------------- Bill Moss of World Whale Police invites those on land and afloat to participate in a funeral ceremony to be held offshore at the site of the murder of this young female hope for the future of the gray whale community. She died at the hands of ruthless thugs whose souls are stained with her blood forever. We will long mourn her senseless death and grieve for the loss of her beauty in her natural world. Our value as humans is greatly diminished by her unwarranted death. She was part of our culture. She was valued beyond self to me. We will never forget this atrocity. We will never forgive this assault on one who means so much to us. The whalers have disgraced their tribe and they have shamed us all. We will go to the site of her death and humble ourselves before those of her kind. We will announce our sadness and sorrow and announce our regret. We will try with our tears to make some atonement for this heinous act. We hope that we have not fallen from grace with Nature. We will share our shame with her family. We will grieve with them. We will try to begin to heal. We are sorry for their loss. A burial wreath will be placed at the spot where she died and words will be spoken. We love you all great whales. We love you all. The time and date of the ceremony are available by word of mouth only. ALSO.... World Whale Police patrol boat TIGER will participate with SEDNA and SSCS on Saturday at a floating demonstration in Neah Bay to protest the killing of the whale and to underscore opposition to further hunting efforts by Makah whalers. More info on the World Whale Police: http://www.worldwhalepolice.org ***** LAST ITEM ---------------- Check out the editorial from the Sequim Gazette (Sequim, WA), located on the Olympic Peninsula. http://www.sequim-gazette.com/Opinion/Columns/Editorials990519.html *****