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The concerns are expressed in a letter dated July 4, 2000 from William W. Wijnstekers, Secretary General to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), to Michael Canny, Chairman of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
The letter was distributed to the IWC Commissioners today. Some delegations, including New Zealand, took strong offence to the letter.
The IWC Chairman suggested that the letter should be considered as a statement from CITES to the annual meeting. However, this was not accepted, and it was decided that the letter should not be disclosed to either observers or media attending the meeting in Adelaide.
“The irony here is that the IWC likes to talk about transparency, and it is therefore quite hypocritical not to make the CITES letter publicly available,” said Rune Frovik, Secretary of the High North Alliance.
The letter from CITES was a response to an invitation to attend the IWC meeting as an observer.
Following are extracts from the letter sent by CITES Secretary General, Willem W. Wijnstekers, dated July 4, 2000:
“Allow me, however, to make use of this opportunity to express serious concern about the escalating and increasingly divisive conflict within the Conference of the Parties to CITES concerning issues related to the conservation and use of cetaceans. In particular the listing of whale stocks on Appendix I of CITES, that may in a number of cases be contrary to the biological criteria for including species or populations in that appendix. The apparent lack of progress – even the alleged obstruction of progress – at the IWC on certain issues are equally of concern to many Parties to CITES as it has caused the transfer of the IWC debate to CITES fora. My prediction that this transfer, as has happened in recent years, will negatively affect the relationship between CITES Parties and polarize decision-making within CITES has unfortunately started to come true.
From my perspective in CITES, it is therefore crucial that the IWC should soon make important progress towards the adoption of a Revised Management Scheme. This would allow the Conference of the Parties to CITES to adopt the appropriate management regime for whale stocks in the CITES-appendices.
I greatly appreciated your presence during the “whaling debate” at the meeting of the Conference of the Parties in April. You will have obtained a good picture of the different positions as a result and I therefore trust you will share the above concerns with me.”
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