Delegation Introduces Bills to Protect Whaling Rights

Press Release

Legislation Would Authorize Bowhead Whale Catch Limits for Alaskan Eskimos

The Alaska Congressional Delegation today introduced legislation to protect the aboriginal whaling rights of Alaska's Native communities. Senators Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) introduced the measure in the U.S. Senate. Congressman Don Young (R-Alaska) introduced companion legislation today in the U.S. House of Representatives.

"For more than thirty years I have worked with the International Whaling Commission to preserve the subsistence rights of Alaska Natives to hunt bowhead whales," said Senator Stevens. "Alaskan Natives continue the ancient tradition of harvesting small numbers of bowhead whales. Not only do these whales serve as their primary food source for the communities, but they define their very identity and culture. This legislation will ensure that Alaska Natives maintain their rights to engage in subsistence whaling - an ancient practice vital for their cultural survival."

"This legislation is crucial to insure that the Alaska native subsistence bowhead whale quota will continue to be set, even if the International Whaling Commission is unable to adopt a quota," said Senator Murkowski. "The allocation will continue to be set within the same biologically sustainable limits we use now, but will allow the United States to set the bowhead quota in the event the IWC process fails. The bowhead hunt is vital to the nutritional, cultural and spiritual needs of Alaskan Natives who subsist on these whales."

"The Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission's harvest has always been sustainable, based on science and based on harvest levels approved by the IWC's Scientific Committee," said Rep. Young. "Alaskan communities on the North Slope rely heavily on whale hunting to feed their villages and families. It is clear that in the fight to outlaw scientific whaling and commercial whaling, many IWC member countries are being pressured by animal rights groups to stop all whaling. These animal rights groups do not understand the subsistence needs of Native people, or worse they just don't care. Neither I, nor the rest of the delegation, will allow these groups to dictate the policies of Alaska. Alaskan Native whalers have already been held hostage during these fights over scientific and commercial whaling and that is not right. I am confident that this legislation will ensure that the AEWC will have their cultural and nutritional needs met in the event that the IWC fails to act to renew their quota or if the IWC decides to hold their quota hostage for political reasons. As well, I am confident that it will be done in a manner that is based on science and the needs of the Alaskan Native people."

For eleven coastal villages in Alaska's Arctic, the bowhead whale is the most vital part of their subsistence resources. The Alaskan Eskimo people of these remote communities have depended on the bowhead whale for thousands of years. Because of its size, the bowhead is a key food resource and is the central focus of their ancient subsistence culture. The subsistence practices and traditions surrounding the taking and sharing of the bowhead are one of the most important ways Alaska's Eskimo people define themselves. Their identity, social structure, and practices for raising children to make them part of the community all are centered on the bowhead whale.

The state of Alaska has no authority to regulate Alaska Eskimo subsistence bowhead whaling. This regulatory authority is vested in the federal government under the Whaling Convention Act of 1949, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and Endangered Species Act. Federal authority for local management of the Eskimo subsistence bowhead whale hunt and for enforcement of regulations imposed on that hunt is delegated to the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Specifically, the bill would amend the Whaling Convention Act to authorize the Secretary of Commerce to issue bowhead whaling quotas to Alaskan Eskimos, in the event that the International Whaling Commission is unable to issue that quota. The current quota does not expire for four more years. The measure is supported by Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission.

Currently, annual catch limits for subsistence whaling by Alaskan Natives is set through periodic negotiations of the International Whaling Commission.

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