International Whaling Commission

International Whaling Commission Latest News

India has reaffirmed its commitment to the conservation of whales and other cetaceans (marine mammals) at the 70th meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC-70) held in Hobart, Australia, recently.

About International Whaling Commission

• It is an intergovernmental organization established to regulate whaling and promote the conservation of whale populations.   
• It was established under the 1946 International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. 
• Formed in response to the alarming decline of whale stocks in the 1930s, the IWC initially aimed to ensure sustainable whaling practices among its member nations. 
• The Convention also applies to factory ships, land stations, and whale catchers under the jurisdiction of the contracting governments, and to all waters in which they carry out whaling.  
• Membership: 
  • Beginning in 1979, IWC membership started to grow: 23 members in 1979, 41 by 1985. Currently, there are 88 contracting governments. 
  • Countries that do not hunt whales can also join the IWC.
  • Some of the current members include: Australia, Brazil, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, India, Japan (until 2019), Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, United Kingdom, and United States.  
• The IWC’s main office is in Impington, near Cambridge, England. 
• There are generally three types of whaling that the Commission regulates:
• Commercial Whaling:
  • In 1986, a global moratorium, or a temporary ban, on commercial whaling was adopted due to the overexploitation of whale stocks. 
  • The Commission has also designated sanctuary areas in the Indian and Southern Oceans where commercial whaling is not allowed. 
  • Although the moratorium is still in place, some countries, such as Norway and Iceland, continue to engage in commercial whaling activities.
• Scientific Research Whaling:
  • Article VIII of the Convention allows contracting governments to issue special permits authorizing the taking of whales for purposes of scientific research. 
  • Japan’s lethal scientific research in the North Pacific and Southern Oceans under such special permits ended in 2019 with their withdrawal from the Convention.
• Subsistence Whaling:
  • The Commission also regulates aboriginal subsistence whaling (whaling by native people to sustain themselves). 
  • Currently, the Commission permits indigenous communities in Denmark (Greenland), the Russian Federation, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and the United States to engage in this type of whaling on certain whale stocks. 
• Over the years, the IWC has faced significant challenges. 
  • It does not have a way to force countries to follow its rules or punish them. 
  • It often becomes a platform for member nations to negotiate over whaling quotas rather than prioritizing conservation efforts. 
• In 2018, the IWC members made the “Florianópolis Declaration.” 
  • They decided that the IWC’s main purpose is to protect whales forever.  
  • They also want all whale populations to return to their numbers before large-scale whaling began. 
  • The declaration also stated that using deadly methods for research is not needed.  
  • After this, Japan announced on December 26, 2018, that it was leaving the IWC.

News: NIE

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