Whaling and whale watching go head to head

by Mauricio Handler Monday, April 2nd, 2007

Tourism based on ecological ideals like whale watching and economical perspectives like whaling, as in the killing of whales, do not mix.

The largest animals to have ever lived on planet earth, particularly in our oceans are, once again under serious threat. The IWC (International Whaling Commission) will meet once again this year in Alaska to discuss commercial whaling and other issues pertinent to these animals preservation and well being. This year the IWC will not have the support of some nations.

Japan and Iceland are a few of the countries that have resumed whaling defying the rulings and bans implemented by the IWC. Things have never been so dire for the whales of our oceans. I will not go onto the details of the IWC and the reason why these nations choose to revert to these practices.
Please go directly to the IWC website for more information.

However, I will address a more personal perspective of this issue, one I have witnessed and been part of for a few years now. Whaling and whale watching do not mix.

At this year’s Beneath the Sea there was a little controversy on the stance of the Caribbean island of Dominica regarding whaling. Dominica is a poor island nation in political chaos and without much direction, at least in matters pertaining to tourism, as tourism still plays a small part in their overall economy. Dominica like other poor nations is most vulnerable to financial aid and favors from countries like Japan that offer incentives in exchange to access to its waters and its natural resources- its whales. Resident sperm whale populations (as well as other species) live in the shadow of Dominica’s rainforest. Whale watching here is still new and a relatively untapped resource. The whales and the essence of Dominica as an eco-friendly nation are priceless, so why would Dominica gamble with its future - unless the future included whaling?

Even after speaking to Dominica’s Deputy Director of Tourism while at BTS, I am not quite sure where Dominica stands. It seems that Dominica has sold its soul to the Japanese allowing them to resume whaling in their territorial waters. If not immediately, soon. All this while promoting whale watching and eco-tourism in US Dive trade shows.

Other nations have gone through the transformation from whaling to whale watching - particularly notable are the Islands of the Azores off Portugal. They were actively hunting here into the early 80’s. Then they successfully transformed their islands into the worlds best place to experience whales on the surface and underwater.

The Dominican Republic has, for many years, protected its whales and encouraged responsible encounters in Silver Bank, Samana Bay, and other protected harbors. These are success stories that require our admiration as well as our patronage. We should travel to, dive, promote and experience these islands that are protecting their resources and not selling out to the pressures of indiscriminate killing. The days of whaling are over and we must throw away the key.

We, as divers and travelers, have the power to at the very least encourage these islands to take a hard look at their policies and to let them know that we are watching. Their actions will not go unnoticed and we will, at the very least, not be visitors in their country.

This is indeed a very touchy subject. Your effort and mine, therefore, need to be very targeted.

I recently had a conversation about the seal pup killing in Canada - the hunt began, again, today. It is the largest slaughter of mammals on the planet and it goes mostly unnoticed. 300,000 seal pups will be clubbed to death and in many cases, skinned while still alive. All for the value of their pelts. A targeted boycott of seafood products from Canada has sent a message and has already taken its financial toll on the same fishermen doing the killing.

Whaling needs to be addressed in the same way.

I would like all of us as a Wetpixel community of photographers, writers, travelers, explorers and thinking individuals to make a difference. We cannot just stand and let the very own animals that we love to photograph be at risk of a resumed hunt. This is no longer a dress rehearsal. Act I has passed, Act II and III are underway, and the curtain is closing quickly on the way we have all experienced planet Earth. Things are changing and quickly.

As a virtual community, we need to look into this and put some pressure on Dominica and other islands - letting them know that it is not in their best interest to associate themselves with global whaling practices. I for one am doing this - it is no longer for me but my children and my children’s children.

I have seen the great whales underwater. Eye to eye. It changes you. I cannot imaging the day that man’s greed and stupidity will leave the oceans barren of these creatures. Then, we will indeed only have macro as a subject of discussion in our forums!

Make your voices heard.

-Mauricio Handler

Ok Macroman- then, how can we help. How can this targetted audience on WP be of help to your Island and the group of you that have a view and the whales best interest at heart? What is the way you see would work? I would prefer you did ask for something. This discussion has been good on all fronts in bringing an issue to light- again. Maybe, just maybe a new united solution can come from this. I am all ears. Mauricio Handler
Posted by handlerphoto on 2007-04-14 11:30:05 how can we help?????
Posted by The Octopus on 2007-04-14 08:05:36 It still remains mindblowing to me that you want to boycott those who are fighting so hard in this issue. But lets look at it from all angles. This is how you see it. Refuse to come to the islands that vote with the Whaling Nations and those same Governments will change their mind out of fear of reduced tourism. This is How the Caribbean politicians see it. How can I develop this nation by creating infrastructure and jobs that will also win us the next elections? Should I take the promise of aid or the threat to tourism? This is how the Caribbean tourism sector sees it. We have been educating children for over a decade on these issues, we have lobbied the Gov to change their position, we have built our businesses carefully for years and now this could destroy us. Not the Government but those with a voice. This is how the prowhaling nations see it. We need countries sympathetic to our beliefs. Those countries who wish to stop us whaling have not had the foresite to go around offering financial aid to undeveloped countries. Let's do it! This is how the US Gov sees it. Hmmm US$8 billion a month in Iraq....or offer aid to our neighbours in the South even though they are no threat. Cost.....maybe $100 m? Hmm bombs away! Do you all agree with every decision your Gov makes? Can't you change it tomorrow? How I see it. We fight hard to save the whales. You boycott us anyway. We go out of business. Our voices have no relevance. The whales die. Will somebody please type the words....How can we help? Please. I promise not to ask for anything I just want to see the words before I give up.
Posted by macroman on 2007-04-13 17:00:12 This is the official position of the Dominica Government delcared in a letter by Mr. Andrew Magloire, Chief Fisheries Officer, Dominica in response to a letter bringing him up to date on the comments and postings of this site inititiated by me last week. Please read it carefully as it is very clear what Dominica has in mind. Mauricio Handler Thank you very much for the information but I have been previewed to this before. This is the usual annual flux of negativism that surrounds the issue relating to whales. As you may know, Dominica promotes the sustainable utilization of all living marine resources including whales. We support also the utilization of whale meat for food where those stocks are robust enough to sustain takes on their populations that are proven to be sustainable. Likewise we promote the alternate development of recreational activities surrounding whales so long as these activities do not adversely affect the social and ecological wealth fare of these populations. It is also feting to note that we respect the rights of others who share a difference of view with respect to use of our living marine resources . We simply hope that others will understand our views and respect our right to express our views with respect to utilization of our living marine resources. This debate can go on forever so I choose only to explain in a very simplistic way the position we express regarding the use and management of our living marine resources. All the Best Andrew Magloire
Posted by handlerphoto on 2007-04-13 15:43:34 Dominica is not in a position to truly evaluate the population of "resident" whales. They do not have the knowledge, infrastructure, manpower or funds to do so. I am very concerned about their the ability of Islands such as Dominica to manage anything correctly in particular their natural resources. Development on land and financial incentives from countries such as Japan impeed any balanced judgments on this issue. Their position regarding whaling is strictly a short sighted economic one. Dominica is incapable of planning, managing, maintaining and enforcing any whaling policy. I respect the position of the tourism operators in Dominica. I am sure they have only the best interest in pretrecting the whales, unfortunately this is not enough. Indeed figting Japan and Norway may be out of the reach of many of us but working closely to smaller battles such as DOminica may be more productive. Dominica needs only to say NO THANK YOU to japan and then push for serious tourism on whale watching to make a true difference. New Zealan, The Islans of the Azores, Mexicos San Ignacio Lagoon, as well as other parts of the world have done this already and are reaping a very profitable long term, sustainable tourism industry because of their decisions. Dominica needs to take this stand as well- without outside pressures such as this forum the battle will be much harder if not impossible to win. I am choosing to help bring about change to an Island I love and know. It is a battle I think we win, but pressure needs to be put on the Island to bring about change. Mauricio Handler
Posted by handlerphoto on 2007-04-13 09:32:40 While whaling is not done in Dominica's waters, the fisheries department does support whaling where there is "adequate" numbers of whales to allow harvesting in other waters. They also look to developing their whale watching and conservation programs. I have been to Dominica and find the people friendly and concerned about the wellfare of the whales in their waters. Unfortunately, their representative voted with the Japan in the IWC to allow whaling. Many of us wonder if this vote was a result of the multimillion donation to build a fiseries plant or true concern over management of excessive populations of a species.
Posted by The Octopus on 2007-04-13 09:10:36 When I read this I have to wonder why is no one talking about putting pressure on the countries that are actually doing the whaling! Or putting pressure on your own Governments to bring a stop to this behaviour? Could it be because Japan and Norway are to big and influential to choose to do battle with? Stop buying their products for a month and lets see what happens. Instead I see that it is preferred to not visit the small developing countries that are desperate to find anyway to develop themselves. What you WILL do is destroy the only voice in these countries that tells the Government here that they should change there vote and support the development of eco tourism. No one in the tourism industry here supports whaling. No one! Do you realy think that by ending our business of tourism in the Eastern Caribbean you will change the Japanese? Will that make them stop whaling just because they have lost a vote at the IWC? They will simply change the parameters and keep on whaling, just like their scientific argument that is widely condemned by all everyone. I wish you could see the amount of passion that has been in the forefront in our regional meetings in Trindad and Dominca, where all whale watch operators, Dive shops, Hotels and others have sat down to discuss what we can do to to prove that the way forward is through tourism. By the way, although it is still bad, Dominica is not and will not open its territorial waters for whaling, the issue at the IWC is not in these waters. As is has been said, look a whale in the eye and it is a life changing experience so any whaling is bad. I would just like to point out it is not in these waters. We need help to turn this around, not coming here will not change the situation, it will hurt our argument and deflate the passion and fight we still have. Respect.
Posted by macroman on 2007-04-11 13:26:59 all of us need to contact our respective govenments and protest this needless killing of Marine Mammals. below is a response I received from Iceland's ambassador: Several countries catch whales, most of them on a much bigger scale than Iceland. The biggest whaling countries among the members of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) are the United States, Russia, Norway, Japan and Greenland. The whaling operations practiced by all those countries, as well as Iceland, are sustainable and legal and in accordance with the rules of the IWC.
Posted by The Octopus on 2007-04-10 16:10:45 I have not yet experienced the wonder of meeting these exceptional beings yet. But I most definatly want to... 100% agree with Mauricio and The Octopus just befre me. Csaba Tökölyi
Posted by zook on 2007-04-04 04:42:30 I couldn't agree more. These are sentient beings, there is no reason to allow countries to continue to kill them. We as a species need to protect our natural resources, before they are no longer there.
Posted by The Octopus on 2007-04-03 04:32:41 The intention of this initial column is to bring awareness to the issue and to make a stand. More direct info on the the Japan/ Dominica link is all over the web. Here is one that explains it pretty clearly: http://www.cdnn.info/alert/eco/w000705d.html E-mails your concerns to the to Steve Johnson- Deputy Director of Tourism- NY (for Dominica) dominicany@msn.com Ask him to send your letter to the director of tourism as well. This is all a start. We need to get a clear picture on where Dominica stands on this issue. Maybe this posting will let them know we are watching. A note to the organizers of the Dominica Dive Fest will also send a message. This is the website with all the operators in Dominica. http://dominicawatersports.com/ We need to hear from them that they will not sell themselves so short. Mauricio Handler
Posted by handlerphoto on 2007-04-02 23:24:10 Well, emails to Dominica may be a small start...here is one: tourism@discoverdominica.com I found that one on the front page of Wetpixel promoting Dominca's Dive Fest.. :( M.
Posted by Starbuck on 2007-04-02 20:47:59 good article Maurice. Is there anything us divers can do besides not visit these countries that vote in favor of or allow whaling? Scott
Posted by sgietler on 2007-04-02 20:39:08