King Salman orders extension of Citizen's Account Program and additional support for a full year    Al-Falih: 1,238 foreign investors obtain premium residency in Saudi Arabia    Irish PM apologizes for walking away from care worker    Several dead as Storm Bert wreaks havoc across Britain    Most decorated Australian Olympian McKeon retires    Adele doesn't know when she'll perform again after tearful Vegas goodbye    'Pregnant' for 15 months: Inside the 'miracle' pregnancy scam    Ukraine losing ground in Russia's Kursk region, says military source    Hezbollah fires rocket barrages into Israel after deadly Beirut strikes    Al Ittihad claims top spot in Saudi Pro League after victory over Al Fateh    Do cigarettes belong in a museum?    Saudi Arabia allows licensed flour milling companies to export flour    Saudi Arabia joins international partnership initiative to boost hydrogen economy    With 25 million monthly active users, Snap Inc. expands presence in Saudi Arabia to serve thriving community of creators, partners and clients    Riyadh Emir inaugurates International Conference on Conjoined Twins in Riyadh    Saudi delegation participates in the 7th U20 Deans Summit in Brazil    Saudi Arabia to host 28th Annual World Investment Conference in Riyadh    Al Khaleej stuns Al Hilal with 3-2 victory, ending 57-match unbeaten run    Al Khaleej qualifies for Asian Men's Club League Handball Championship final    Katy Perry v Katie Perry: Singer wins right to use name in Australia    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Whaling commission to seek way out of deadlock
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 18 - 06 - 2010

Replacing a whaling moratorium with a controlled cull will be discussed by negotiators who gather next week to forge a compromise between nations who say hunting whales is their birthright and those who call it a crime against nature, according to Reuters.
A moratorium has been in force for 24 years but Japan, Norway and Iceland have caught thousands of whales since the 1980s, arguing that they are not bound by a total ban despite international condemnation.
A proposal to be debated when the 88-nation International Whaling Commission (IWC) meets in the Moroccan city of Agadir offers a compromise: the moratorium would be lifted for 10 years but in return whaling would be subject to strict control.
That idea has been given qualified support by some in the anti-whaling camp who say if the killing cannot be stopped for now, the pragmatic approach is to try to limit it.
"I ... would rather there were no whaling but wishing something were true doesn't make it true," said Susan Lieberman, of the anti-whaling Pew Environment Group. "A good decision (in Agadir) could be better than the status quo."
But the proposal has provoked a furious response on both sides of the whaling debate.
WHALERS' CHARTER OR BACKDOOR BAN?
Some green campaigners say lifting the moratorium is a sell-out.
"(We have) given the proposed 'deal' fair and careful reading, but no matter how you look at it, it's a 'whalers' charter'," Chris Butler-Stroud, CEO of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, said in a statement.
The pro-whaling camp says the proposal to be debated at the meeting in Agadir on June 21 is a ruse to outlaw all whaling.
"The Norwegian authorities run legal, commercial whaling which is based on a scientific and sustainable catch," said Geir Wulff-Nilsen, head of Norway's High North Alliance, which represents communities where whaling is part of the way of life.
"To say that we can do this for 10 years is a backdoor way of stopping the hunts," he told Reuters.
The compromise proposal, put forward by the Chilean diplomat who chairs the IWC and his deputy, would give quotas to allow Japan, Norway and Iceland to hunt whales for 10 years while the IWC works out a longer-term solution.
Its supporters say the number of whales that could be killed under the quotas would be substantially less than now, when the three whaling nations set their own quotas and hunt whales outside the IWC's control.
Whaling campaigners say the outcome of the debate could come down to the position taken by Japan, which hunts hundreds of whales each season for what it says are research purposes.
What stance Japan chooses to take will depend on the outcome of horse-trading at the meeting, in particular over the size of the quotas and the species of whale to which they apply.
For now at least, the Japanese government is giving away few clues on its negotiating position.
"We will discuss patiently with other member nations to achieve an acceptable agreement that is based on the proposal by the chairman and co-chairman," said Takashi Mori, an official at the Fisheries Agency's department overseeing deep-sea fishing.


Clic here to read the story from its source.