===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list ===== FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Folks, many pots are boiling at present! We'll keep you updated on new specific ways to stop the Makah slaughter, but until then, here are some key items for you to CONTINUE working on- we have brought a terrific amount of pressure on the politicians that supposedly represent us, and this is NO time to let them off the hook. HERE IS WHAT YOU MUST DO TO KEEP THE PRESSURE ON! 1) Keep calling your Congressional representatives. DEMAND a statement of position from your congressional representative and senator! To find your representatives, go to: http://www.hsus.org/forms/search_reps.html or http://www.berkshire.net/~ifas/activist 2) Keep the calls coming into the Council on Environmental Quality- don't let them get away with sending out weak letters of explanation and hastily rewritten press releases from the Department of Commerce- keep them busy explaining to you how they can live with approving this slaughter! (See item below) Council on Environmental Quality: (202) 456-6224 Sally Ericson's direct phone number: (202) 395-5750. Sally Ericson's direct fax number: (202) 456-6546 3) Don't let the folks at GORE 2000 off the hook, either. Keep them busy asking their boss why so many people seem to dislike him lately... and be sure to remind them of how you will never vote for Mr. Gore- "Loser 2000"... GORE 2000 Telephone: (202) 263-6000 (On a humorous note: The "NOT Gore" web-site is at: http://rdb2.com/notgore2000/) 4) Pencil in a day off for June 18... Our beloved vice-president and whale-killer Al Gore will be visiting Seattle that day, and there are plans afoot to remind him of the blood on his hands- stay tuned for details, but keep the day open on your schedule! (From http://www.stopwhalekill.org) Just a word of advice: As a former Member of Congress myself, I can tell you that volume mail, (or email) on an issue counts for far less than a well-written personal letter or email, however brief. It's OK to use the ACLU letter as a guide, but personal letters or emails are far more impressive than a copy- cat message that comes in by the hundreds. Such messages are usually tied in a stack with a "total received" number on them, or just summarized as a number on a mail tally sheet. Even more impressive is a visit to the congressman's home district office, or a phone call to that office and to Washington. If the call is made to the Washington office, a person should ask for the congressman's "Legislative Affairs Assistance" who handles the forfeiture issue. The caller should state that he or she is a registered voter in the (whatever) district of (state) and wants the congressman to support the bill. They should also ask for a written reply from the congressman in which he states his position ***** FROM SEA SHEPHERD CONSERVATION SOCIETY -------------------------------------------------------------------------- RESPONSE TO THE COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY Those of you who wrote, called, faxed, or e-mailed the Council on Environmental Quality to take issue with the Administration's zealous backing of the Makah whale hunt -- a plan the Council signed off on -- should by now have received a hastily updated position paper prepared by the Dept. of Commerce in response, or a "personalized" version of the same document signed by George T. Frampton, Jr., Acting Chair. Here is Sea Shepherd's response, which includes some points you might wish to make in >YOUR< response to the CEQ: Dear Ms. Ericcson, Thank you for faxing us the Department of Commerce position paper on Makah whaling. We are well aware of the U.S. Administration's position on this issue. It is in error in several key respects: 1. "The Makah ... halted [whaling] because commercial whalers had decimated the gray whale's numbers." As a matter of historical fact, the Makah turned from whaling to seal hunting in the late 19th century because the profits to be made from the sealing trade exceeded those that could be made from whaling. 2. "In 1997, the IWC provided a gray whale subsistence quota of 20 whales over a five-year period. " The quota provided was not provided for the Makah. The IWC refused to recognize any need of the Makah to whale under the guidelines established by the Commission for aboriginal subsistence whaling. 3. "The U.S. fulfilled a moral and legal obligation by honoring the Makah's treaty right, which resulted in IWC approval for a limited aboriginal quota." By maintaining the pretense that the IWC quota applies to the Makah -- a conclusion rejected by the majority of the delegations at the 1997 IWC meeting -- the U.S. violated its moral and legal obligation to the IWC as a signatory nation to the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. It also violated the U.S. Whaling Convention Act, which provides that permission to kill whales may only be extended to a Native American whaling organization which "has been recognized by the Commission as having a cultural and/or subsistence need for whaling." 4. "...the Makah tribe has committed in writing that no portion of the whale will be sold." The Makah expressly reserved a right to commercial whaling in their 1995 request to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for representation at the IWC. Their specific plans for an industrial whale slaughter and processing plant were previously communicated to the National Marine Fisheries Service. The Makah have promised only not to whale commercially at the present time. 5. "The Makah performed tribal rituals before dividing the whale among its members for personal consumption." Much of the whale was parceled out to 2,000 guests and visiting members of other tribes at a potlatch. Portions were taken to a classroom in nearby Port Townsend and fed to a classroom of children without the knowledge of school officials. The meat has spread far beyond the boundaries of the Makah reservation. In view of the errors of fact and omission in the Administration's position on Makah whaling, we again extend our invitation to Vice President Gore to participate in Congressional negotiations to return long sought tribal lands to the Makah in exchange for the removal of the anachronistic whaling clause from their treaty. This will allow the United States to honor the international conservation covenants to which it is signatory -- which supersede conflicting tenets in prior domestic treaties -- and return to its former uncompromised position as a protector of whales worldwide. ***** FROM BREACH MARINE PROTECTION ----------------------------------------------------------- IN HONOR OF OUR FRIEND, WHOSE LIFE WAS STOLEN FROM HER ON THE 17th of MAY, 1999 Breach Marine Protection announces the arrival of the first batch of bracelets and necklaces devoted to the baby gray whale killed on the 17th of May. We are producing these items to foster a continued sense of unity among activists, to raise funds for the lawsuit appeal and surrounding costs and campaigns, to spark conversations about the entire issue, and in general to provide you with a tangible item with which to carry the message against the Makah tragedy. It would be wonderful if you could participate in this by purchasing a bracelet or necklace in honor of the beloved whale killed on the 17th. The items are made with alphabet beads, strung and tied together by hand. They honor in a special way, carrying the name of the murdered whale. Her name is the Makah word for "Beloved," and she was given this identity by a very special lady named Alberta Thompson, a Makah elder who has tirelessly spoken out against the Makah whaling. The bracelets / necklaces are $10, plus $1.50 shipping costs within the US. If you live outside the US, please email us about shipping costs. As always, no money will be used for any purpose except that which is in the direct interest of our friends of the sea. If you would like a necklace / bracelet to wear in honor of the beloved whale, please send $11.50 (US residents) to: Breach Marine Protection - US P.O. Box 532 Woodbury, CT 06798 Please email us as soon as possible with your preferences: I would like a: ___ Bracelet ___ Necklace On: ___White cord ___Black cord with ___silver-colored beads ___clay beads: green letters on black background ___clay beads: blue letters on black background All beads are square. The clay beads look a bit more animated, while the silver ones are more low key. We will also have other types in within a month. At the moment, we have a very limited supply of all of the above. If the type you want runs out, we will try to get it for you as soon as we can. However, the clay beads may be more difficult to find again. Thank you very much for your consideration and for caring. BMP ***** U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MAKAH -- NO RESERVATION IS TOO REMOTE TO HAVE DRUG PROBLEMS: Due to the Tribe's remote location, which is at the farthest tip of the northwest corner of the lower 48 States, there's not much for the residents to do--especially for the youths. Drugs are a Tribal concern; it's been reported that ships, with mother loads of illegal drugs, are floating the stuff onto Tribal beaches where drug smugglers are landing their small aircraft. Undetected drug runners receive the shipments for distribution throughout the Northwest. *****