Siberian Whalers Seek Assistance

- INWR Digest -

Marine mammal hunters in the Chukotka region of the Russian far east have recently tried to organize themselves in order to remedy the extreme shortages of food and the collapse of the regional economy. Until 1993 the village economies were supported by the russian whale catcher, the Zviozdny, that landed a portion of the Russian quota of 170 gray whales to each village in the open-water season. Part of the catch was used to support fox farms which employed many village residents and thus ensured money for imported supplies was available in each community.

However, recent economic reforms (and the rising coasts of operating the ageing catcher boat) ended the catcher-boat whaling operations, forcing marine mammal hunters who had not whaled for many years to resume whaling with inadequate equipment and with scant knowledge of how to whale safely. Though cooperation with the one village that had retained some traditional whaling lore (including knowledge about self-penetrating whale lance heads), an increasing number of gray whales have been landed over the past three years. However, the cost has been great, including loss of life and damage to whale boats.

For these reason, letters were sent to all marine hunters in communities bordering the Bering, Chukchi, and East Siberian seas (in March 1995) calling for creation of an association of marine hunters of Chukotka. The letter ended with the statement:

     Nobody will decide for us. We ourselves should think of the preservation of the
     most ancient culture - marine hunting, which is the basis of life, culture and the
     language of coastal dwellers of Chukotka. We should maintain ourselves as unique
     peoples and pass the experience of our traditional mode of life on to our
     descendants.

This letter was signed by the President of the Association of Indigenous Minorities of Chukotka, the Chairman of the Eskimo [Yuit] Society of Chukotka, and the Vice- President, Inuit Circumpolar Conference-Chukotka.

Letters were also sent from the representatives of the whaling communities to the Russian IWC Commissioner (on March 18 1996), and to the Russian Duma [Parliament](April 2 and April 5, 1996). The letter to the Russian IWC commissioner referred to the critical socio-economic situation among the indigenous coastal peoples of Chukotka, the failure of authorities to include indigenous representation in the Russian IWC delegation, and the lack of a requested meeting with U.S. authorities to discuss bowhead and gray whales issues. In seeking the commissioner's attention to these outstanding matters, the Chukotkans urged that their request for bowhead whales should not be at the expense of the Alaskan whalers' quota, nor should it be at the expense of the Russian quota of gray whales upon which the future economic security of the region would be based. The April 2 1996 letter referred to the collapse of the regional economy and the consequent hardship being experience at the village level:

     There is a disastrous situation connected with providing the indigenous population
     with food in Chukotka. There is a vicious circle whereby the indigenous population
     has no means of existence nor earnings. On a number of fur farms people do not
     get their wages for more than a year ... and prices for imported foods in rural
     stores constantly increase making these foods virtually inaccessible. This causes
     suffering,particularly among children, and threatens irreversible consequences
     regarding the survival ... of the indigenous people.

In addition to the letters to Russian authorities, appeals have also been sent to the Alaskan whalers for assistance in obtaining appropriate weapons and training in their use.