Subject: JAPAN'S IWC POSITIONS

From: Alan Macnow <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 14:34:01 -0700 (PDT)

FROM: Alan Macnow
              Consultant, Japan Whaling Association

        Following are the positions and objectives of the Government of
        Japan at the upcoming International Whaling Commission meeting:

                        Japan and the 48th IWC Annual Meeting

        I. OUR BASIC POSITIONS ON WHALING:

        THE PRINCIPLE OF SUSTAINABLE USE based on the best available
        scientific evidence has no exceptions from its application.
        Whaling is not an extraordinary activity but is one applicable
        area in the conservation and rational utilization of wildlife or
        fishery resources.

        SCIENTIFIC FACTS, rather than political and emotional factors,
        are the basis of any conservation and management measures for
        natural resources.

        LEGAL INTEGRITY of the IWC must be maintained through the judi-
        cious efforts of the responsible contracting nations. In the
        past, the IWC has adopted several decision which contravene the
        purpose and objectives of the ICRW (the International Convention
        for the Regulation of Whaling), notably its stated purpose as "a
        convention to provide proper conservation of whale stocks and
        thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling indus-
        try."

        FOOD SECURITY must be seriously considered. Particular attention
        should be drawn to the consensus agreement of 95 countries at
        the International Conference on the Sustainable Contribution of
        Fisheries to Food Security (Kyoto, Japan, December 1995). The
        agreed Declaration includes that the States should, without
        prejudice to the rights and obligations of States under interna-
        tional law:

             * Recognize that the FAO projects a substantial potential
             shortfall by 2010 of the supply of fish and fishery produc-
             ts to meet demands from an increased human population,
             which in turn will adversely affect world food security;

             * When and where appropriate, consider harvesting at multi-
             ple trophic levels in a manner consistent with sustainable
             development of these resources;

             * Study the effectiveness of multispecies management;

             * Call for an increase in the respect and understanding of
             social, economic, and cultural differences among States and
             regions in the use of living aquatic resources, especially
             cultural diversity in dietary habits, consistent with man-
             agement objectives.

        II. SPECIFIC TOPICS AT THE IWC MEETING, ABERDEEN, UK, 1996

        Japan seeks support and understanding on the following points;

        (1) CORRECTING LEGALLY QUESTIONABLE PROCEEDINGS OF THE IWC:

             a. THE DECADE OLD MORATORIUM on commercial whaling should
                 be reviewed, as the Schedule of the Convention so re-
                 quired it to be by 1990 at the latest.

             b. THE SOUTHERN OCEAN SANCTUARY should be abandoned. The
                 Sanctuary adopted in 1994 disregards Article V.2 (a),
                 (b) and (d) of the Convention, which require various
                 specific conditions for the promulgation of new IWC
                 regulations.

        (2) CORRECTING THE SCIENTIFIC NEGLIGENCE OF THE IWC:

             a.  NEW SCIENTIFIC FINDINGS, such as the population
                 estimates of 760,000 Southern Hemisphere minke whales,
                 should be fully applied in implementing management
                 measures. Currently, these data do not have any chance
                 to contribute to any decision of the IWC.

             b.  THE NEWLY DEVELOPED REVISED MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE for
                 whale resources should be implemented by the IWC, and
                 the effort of its Scientific Committee to finalize the
                 scientific aspects of the Procedure should be ack-
                 nowledged

             c.  SCIENTIFIC VALUE OF RESEARCH TAKE of minke whales
                 should be appreciated as the research has provided val-
                 uable data for its Scientific Committee. Scientific
                 catches of minke whales are legal and have proved to
                 have no adverse effect on the stock. Lethal research is
                 still a indispensable measure to improve the management
                 of whale stocks.

        (3) CORRECTING SOCIAL AND CULTURAL NEGLIGENCE OF THE IWC:

             a.  COMMUNITY BASED WHALING should be reopened. Currently,
                 for example, four coastal areas in Japan which have a
                 long history of whaling are facing major hardships re-
                 lated to socio-economic impacts caused by the IWC
                 Moratorium.

             b.  AN INTERIM QUOTA of minke whales should be allocated to
                 these communities to alleviate the hardships.

        (4) JAPAN CONTINUES TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE IWC through various ac-
        tions, including:

             a.  PROVIDING SCIENTIFIC DATA by continuing cetacean re-
                 search programs. These include the IDCR sighting survey
                 in the Antarctic, blue whale research aimed at the
                 restoration of its stocks, and special permit research
                 programs involving the research take of minke whales.

             b.  SUPPORTING THE IWC FINANCIALLY by providing the largest
                 share of annual contributions among all of the con-
                 tracting nations.