===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list ===== FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please don't forget to attend the rally in Port Angeles this coming Tuesday, June 8! All the details have been posted in previous updates, but feel free to contact us should you have any further questions. Be there- join with others who feel the same as you about the senseless slaughter now going on in Washington! The Clallam County commissioners will be asked (again) to adopt a resolution opposing the Makah whale killings, and we think it's high time they did so! We also think they might be interested in hearing from you folks about the matter... If applicable, we encourage you to explain to them how the ongoing Makah whale killing will affect your plans to travel on the Olympic Peninsula in the future. Be sure and let them know how you feel about visiting Clallam County-"Whaling Capital USA!" Encourage them to take a stand and DO THE RIGHT THING! Please call, fax or e-mail your comments before the Tuesday rally. Those of you that can't make the rally can help make a big difference here. Get your friends and neighbors to start calling and writing! You can reach the commissioners at: COMMISSIONERS: Carole Boardman (D) Mike Doherty (D) Martha Ireland (R) Telephone: (360) 417-2233 Fax: (360) 417-2493 E-mail: commissioners@co.clallam.wa.us ***** JAPAN TRYING TO BUILD SUPPORT FOR COMMERCIAL WHALING ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the wake of the Makah whale hunt, officials in Tokyo said today that Japan hopes to coax developing nations to join the International Whaling Commission by giving them financial help. The Asian nation is bidding to gain support for commercial whaling. By encouraging potential pro-whaling countries to join, Japan hopes to achieve a greater balance on the commission. The commission now is dominated by an anti-whaling nations. Japanese officials say the plan is not an attempt to buy votes. Aid will be given to countries that have been reluctant to join the commission for fear of damaging their diplomatic and economic ties with the West. (Northwest Cable News) ***** FROM WEST COAST ANTI-WHALING SOCIETY ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The advertised whaling canoe rides at the Oak Bay Tea Party in Victoria this weekend have nothing to do with whaling. The owner of the company has our petitions on board to oppose whaling and to have BC waters designated a whale sanctuary. If anyone protests this event they will be protesting the efforts of a fellow whale protector, not a whale hunt supporter. Focus you efforts on more pressing issues like the resumption of whaling by the Nuu-chah-nulth or the Makah whalers intentions for the rest of this month. The owner of the canoe is even changing the name of his company so that there is no confusion about his intentions. Thanks Anna Hall President West Coast Anti-Whaling Society ***** THE PLOT THICKENS- THANKS TO THE MAKAH ------------------------------------------------------------------------- VANCOUVER, June 2 /CNW/ - Michael O'Sullivan has just returned from Grenada and he is furious. He had been participating in meetings of the International Whaling Commission, and what he found shocked and disgusted him: ``Our investigation has revealed beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Canada is out to wreck the international ban on the trade in whale meat,'' said an angry Michael O'Sullivan, Executive Director of the Humane Society of Canada. He says that he asked ten other nations for help in challenging Canada's actions, but was told that it was an internal matter. In other words: ``If Canadians can't stop their own government from behaving this way, what do you expect us to do about it?'' said O'Sullivan. ``And you know something, they're absolutely right. These nations respond to their tax paying citizens. They have worked long and hard to protect whales. Why should they be asked to take responsibility for the illegal actions of our government?'' Breaking the whale meat ban would be devastating, says O'Sullivan, because it would result in the resumption in large scale commercial whaling all over the world: ``If David Anderson and his Department of Fisheries and Oceans think they're going to get away with this, they're delusional. Canadians simply won't stand for it,'' said O'Sullivan. Just last month, a study released by the Government of Canada showed that 95% of Canadians across the country support the protection of wildlife. Reaction on the west coast of Canada has been equally swift and dramatic. Citizens of British Columbia have expressed public outrage over the cruel and barbaric killing of a grey whale near the border with Canada. ``The Humane Society of Canada has sought and received assurances from Premier Glen Clark that natives will not be able to kill whales as a part of any land claims treaty. In fact, the Premier has repeatedly stated that he will not even allow the subject to come up in settlement negotiations,'' said HSC Western Regional Director Al Hickey. But some natives have vowed to go whaling off the coast of British Columbia anyway. Their spokesman is Tom Happynook, who heads up a group called the World Council of Whalers based near Nanaimo - an organization, which O'Sullivan believes, was set up and funded by the Japanese government and whalers. The Humane Society of Canada is developing some promising leads in its ongoing investigation into the link between the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and former Canadian civil servants who now work for the Japanese Government and whalers. ``The Japanese are in the background pulling all the strings,'' said O'Sullivan. ``At the meetings of the International Whaling Commission, the World Council of Whalers lobbied with the Japanese, held joint news conferences, and even organized a media symposium which was bought and paid for by the Japanese.'' Last month, the Makah killed a young female grey whale, which swam right up to the side of their boat. She was harpooned twice and killed with four shots from a .50 calibre anti-tank gun. The World Council of Whalers says it their cultural right to do the same thing, even though they admit the last time natives in BC killed a grey whale was more than 70 years ago. Using speedboats and a .50 calibre anti tank gun, the Makah harass and try to kill the whales when they are at their most vulnerable - during the fall when the females are pregnant or during the spring when they are travelling with their calves. ``Let's get one thing straight. This kind of cowardly behaviour is simply not acceptable. Cruelty to animals isn't anyone's cultural right,'' he said. Documents obtained by The Humane Society of Canada under the Federal Access to Information Act clearly show that Canada is prepared to break international treaties and our own domestic laws. However, even that pales in comparison with what O'Sullivan uncovered by speaking with other delegations at the International Whaling Commission. During separate face to face meetings with a high ranking U.S. government official and lawyer for the Makah, they both confirmed that neither had ever asked Canada for permission to kill whales or export the meat from the hunt. ``Instead officials with our own Department of Fisheries and Oceans voluntarily offered these permits. Who the hell do these people think they are? This is a complete betrayal of trust they owe all Canadians,'' said O'Sullivan. ``Japanese whalers may get this kind of support from their government. However, we do things a little differently in this country. Canadians are law abiding citizens and they expect the same from their politicians and civil servants. No one is going to get away with behaving like an environmental outlaw,'' said O'Sullivan. The Humane Society of Canada is prepared to take all legal steps necessary to make certain that no Canadian laws or international treaties are broken. Last month, the group demanded that the RCMP, the federal Ethics Counsellor, the Prime Minister and Secretariats for three international treaties launch independent investigations of their own. The organization is also preparing to file a formal complaint under the NAFTA Environmental Accords. Al Hickey was the Chief Executive of the BC SPCA for 17 years. During the past 30 years, Michael O'Sullivan has worked here in Canada and in over 70 countries on issues facing people, animals and the environment. For further information: Al Hickey or Michael O'Sullivan toll free at 1-800-641-KIND or cell phone (416) 876-9685. Visit our website at www.humanesociety.com For those of you wishing to share your thoughts on the matter, the Canadian consulate in Seattle can be e-mailed at: seacons@consulate-seattle.org ***** LETTER TO THE LOS ANGELES TIMES ----------------------------------------------------------- "Congratulations to the noble Makah Indians! They have revived their cherished cultural tradition of hunting gray whales from power-boats using modern harpoons and .50 caliber rifles. Perhaps now we will at last see the revival of other noble American traditions, such as shooting buffalo from moving trains or plinking bald eagles out of the sky from helicopters." John Nelson ***** THEY SAID IT -------------------- " ...But boy! Do they taste good! Nothing like a big, juicy, whaleburger. There is a restaurant in Nairobi called "The Carnivore" where they serve every kind of meat they can get their hands on. Chicken, lamb, mutton, beef, gnu, eland, zebra, goat, giraffe. I bet they would love to get some whale meat. It is one of my favorite places to eat. Yum!" ("Veterinarian" Allen Ingling, in a recent letter to a list subscriber) *****