LONDON–(Business Wire)–
Tomorrow, Monday 21st June, heralds the start of one of the most significant and
potentially controversial weeks that conservationists may see for some time to
come, when the International Whaling Commission (IWC) votes on the fate of the
24 year ban on commercial whaling in Agadir, Morocco.

Conservationists are particularly concerned about the USA and New Zealand who
actively promote the legitimization of commercial whaling. Their efforts serve
only the interests of the three current whaling nations – Iceland, Norway and
Japan – nations who, during the last 24 years, have done everything possible to
destroy what is one of the biggest successes of the conservation movement – the
international ban on commercial whaling.

WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, calls on countries to learn
from history: “The facts speak for themselves. Governments should not suspend
the ban on commercial whaling, but instead put pressure on the countries which
operate openly in contempt of international decisions. The Moratorium has been a
success story that needs to reach its final goal: the permanent end of
commercial whaling globally”, says Nicolas Entrup, WDCS spokesperson in Agadir,
Morocco.

A brief overview on Whaling figures:

Total catches 1960 – 1969: 591.066 (an average of 59.107 per year) Total catches
1970 – 1979: 316.211 (an average of 31.621 per year Total catches 1980 – 1986
(the year the Moratorium entered into force): 60.047 (an average of 8.578) Total
catches 1987 – 2009: 37.610 (an average of 1.635 per year)

“Commercial whaling brought many whale species to the brink of extinction and
eliminated many whale populations forever. The Moratorium was a last ditch
reaction to ensure we did not lose many populations and species forever and
meant many countries permanently ceased commercial whaling. It would be a
fundamental mistake now to reward those three whaling nations who have continued
to ignore the international consensus on commercial whaling and are opposed by
millions of people around the world”, says Entrup of WDCS.

While the USA and New Zealand seek to serve the interests of the whalers,
Australia and the block of Latin American countries are to be congratulated for
standing strong in their rejection of the current proposal. The world now
watches in anticipation regarding exactly how the European Union positions
itself. After months of international negotiations, the European Union agreed to
reject the current proposal at a meeting in Brussels last Friday and defined
their principles for further negotiations. The good news, for conservationists,
is that EU countries that lobbied for supporting commercial whaling quotas being
given, such as Sweden and Denmark, will now be bound by that decision.

“This week the world will get to know what their governments mean when they talk
of `whale conservation`. They will see once and for all which countries are
willing to stand by their principles and which are not”, WDCS concludes.

You can access fully animated graphs showing whaling numbers and the
implications of the DEAL, here http://www.wdcs.co.uk/whaling_graphs/main.swf

Note to Editors Established back in 1987, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation
Society (WDCS), is the leading global charity dedicated to the conservation and
welfare of all whales and dolphins (also known as cetaceans). In short, we are
the world voice for the protection of these animals, creating pressure to bring
about change.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://www.cisionwire.com

WDCS Press in Agadir
Laura Döhring, + 212 641 534 095
Laura.doehring@wdcs.org

Copyright Business Wire 2010