Prideaux on Whales and Dolphins: ‘resource’ or ‘right’?

Whales and Dolphins: 'resource' or 'right'?

2010 started with a physical clash between whalers and activists in the southern ocean, sparking a global conversation about how we regard whales and dolphins – are they a resource for the human race, or do they have an inherent right to their life, their liberty and their wellbeing?

In January I asked this question on openDemocracy. At the time it seemed, to some at least, irrelevant and somewhat odd.

Now, with only one week to go before on the most fundamental wildlife protection decision in 25 years is taken – to resume legitimate and legalized whaling again or not, it seems more relevant than ever. The dialogue sparked by an eventful half year has also progressed.

An eventful half-year sparks a global conversation

In February, the 2010 Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science discussed whether the emerging scientific knowledge about the cultural and cognitive processes of whales and dolphins should influence international policy decisions concerning them. Their conclusions were that yes, it should.

Within three days of the conference, the orca Tilikum drowned his trainer. Unexpectedly, the media and the public didn't turn on Tilikum. Instead they openly asked if we should keep such mighty, complex and intelligent species in captivity.

In March the International Whaling Commission (IWC) met to discuss the details of a 'deal' about the future of whaling activities. Sharp debate erupted. And the political dance for positions began.

Within the week, The Cove, a documentary investigating the annual slaughter of more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises around Japan, unexpectedly received the Academy Award for Best Documentary 2010.

By the end of March, a Los Angeles restaurant the Hump was closing its doors as a self-imposed penalty for serving whale meat.

In late April, an unprecedented US Congressional oversight hearing was held to review if there was education and conservation value of keeping marine mammals in captivity.

April also marked the second major oil spill in six months. Remarkably, people noticed that these spills were seriously threatening the habitats of whale and dolphin populations.

In late May another conference was being held in Finland to discuss question of whether whales and dolphins should be considered as non-human persons, concluding that all whales and dolphins have the right to life, liberty and wellbeing. The Declaration quickly went online for the world to adopt and signatures poured in nearly crashing the site.

Soon after Australia announced its formal intent to challenge to Japan's whale hunting in the Antarctic through the International Court of Justice.

Japan's rebuttal was to launch a fleet of five vessels to slaughter some 260 whales in the Northeast Pacific.

With six eventful months behind us, we now look towards the IWC meeting next week where Governments will formally consider the 'deal' to resume commercial whaling.

Taking the debate to the people, this weekend, Peter Garrett launched a YouTube campaign.

No longer is the Australian Government just speaking to Australians, now they invite the world to join them.

We have to decide now

This IWC meeting will in some ways conclude the six month conversation, and set the tone for our relationship with these animals for decades to come. Will our consideration of whales and dolphins be based on numerical calculations of abundance, or will we recognize whales and dolphins as highly evolved mammals living in complex societies, which we simply wish to respect?

That the discussion is even taking place, indicates we are on the road towards a position of respect, perhaps even rights.

No-one is suggesting that whales and dolphins be granted a right to vote, to hold a drivers license, or to receive a free and fair education. But, in this short half-year we have had enough examples posed to evoke a deep and thoughtful global conversation about our collective moral compasses.

Will we return to a world that accepts whaling? Will whales and dolphins, like Tilikum, continue to circle a pool for our entertainment? The conversation has evolved, and now the choice is ours to make.

Margi Prideaux, WildPolitics.net

* North Coast Voices would like to take this opportunity to welcome Margi Prideaux as a guest contributor and applaud her advocacy on behalf of all cetaceans.