Aboriginal whaling
Aboriginal whaling or indigenous whaling is the hunting of whales by indigenous peoples recognised by either IWC (International Whaling Commission) or the hunting is considered as part of indigenous activity by the country.[2] It is permitted under international regulation, but in some countries remains a contentious issue. (The hunting of smaller cetaceans is covered at Dolphin drive hunting.)[3] It is usually considered part of the subsistence economy. In some places, whaling has been superseded by whale watching instead. This article deals with communities that continue to hunt; details about communities that have ended the practice may be found in History of whaling.
Under the terms of the 1986 moratorium, the International Whaling Commission allows the activity to be carried out by aboriginal groups if it occurs on a subsistence basis, similar to subsistence fishing. This Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling is restricted to native peoples and others working on their behalf, as defined by the IWC.[4]
The IWC says that:[5]
In order for a country to carry out a hunt under the aboriginal group clause, the nation must provide the IWC with evidence of "the cultural and subsistence needs of their people." In particular, the hunt is not intended for commercial purposes and the caught meat cannot be exported.[6][2]
In 2018, the Commission endorsed proposals made by a working group established six-years earlier to consider some long-standing and complex questions, and improve the way that the Commission considered ASW. A number of new initiatives were endorsed in order to facilitate a more straight-forward process when catch limits are next considered at the 2024 meeting of the Commission.[7] The new initiatives include:
Russian whaling[edit]
Chukchi people of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug in the Russian Far East are permitted to take up to 140 gray whales from the North-East Pacific population each year.
Caribbean whaling[edit]
Some whaling is conducted from Grenada, Dominica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint Lucia. Species hunted are the short-finned pilot whale, killer whale, pygmy killer whale and spinner dolphins. Throughout the Caribbean, around 400 pilot whales are killed annually with the meat being sold locally. This hunting of small cetaceans is not regulated by the IWC.
Whales are hunted in Bequia, the second largest of the Grenadines.[18] Natives of Bequia are allowed to catch up to four humpback whales per year using only traditional hunting methods of hand-thrown harpoons in small, open sailboats. The limit is rarely met, with no catch some years.[19] Its classification as aboriginal, and therefore permissible, is highly contested. In the 2012 meeting of the IWC, delegates from several anti-whaling countries, and environmental groups, spoke out against it, calling it "artisanal whaling out of control,"[18]
Issues that threaten aboriginal whaling rights[edit]
Commercial whaling and poachers hunt whales in large quantities and sell them illegally . The International Whaling Commission (IWC) does not allow the hunting of any whales except for aboriginal subsistence whaling and scientific whaling, which have catch limits to maintain the conservation of whales.[22] These groups must report their hunts and the number of whales killed in order to track the population of whale species and conservation. Hunting illegally means the kills are not reported, which makes it difficult to maintain population numbers and conservation.