Whaling Panel Opens Meeting Makah Tribe Asks Permission To Resume Commercial Hunts

The International Whaling Commission opened its annual meeting Monday in Monaco, and a proposal by a Washington state Indian tribe to begin whale hunts for the first time in 70 years is one of the contentious issues it must face.

The 43-nation commission, founded in 1948 to prevent overhunting of whales, has forbidden commercial whaling since 1986. However, it is coming under increasing pressure from traditional whalers, including the Makah tribe in Washington state, to ease hunting rules.

In opening the meeting, Monaco’s Prince Rainier urged delegates to seek solutions that would spare as many whales as possible. “The tense conflict between the whaling and anti-whaling factions seems more and more a no-win situation - alas - for the whales,” he said.

A few protesters gathered Monday in downtown Monaco, including Jeff Ides, a Makah Indian in native dress. Ides opposes a U.S. proposal that would allow his tribe to hunt a few gray whales a year. The IWC allows some indigenous peoples such as the Inuits to hunt whales for subsistence.

“There are some of us who are opposed,” Ides said. His tribe has not hunted whales for 70 years and Ides doesn’t think it needs to start now.

However, another tribe member, Wayne Johnson, said whaling could help his tribe of about 1,400 cope with 60 percent unemployment.

“We just want to feed our people,” Johnson said.

Last week, Rep. Jack Metcalf, R-Wash., and a coalition of groups filed suit in Washington, D.C., to block the hunt.

During its five-day session, the International Whaling Commission also will review an Irish proposal to allow limited commercial whale hunts; a Japanese program to hunt whales for scientific purposes; and examine methods for killing whales and requests for quotas by indigenous groups.