Caribbean countries allege dirty tricks at international whaling meet

Monday, June 20, 2005

ULSAN, South Korea (AFP): Western governments and environmental groups have threatened and intimidated other states because of their opposition to a ban on commercial whaling, delegates from two Caribbean countries alleged Sunday.

Speaking on the eve of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting that opens Monday, representatives of Dominica as well as Antigua and Barbuda accused the West of neo-colonialism in trying to influence how they vote.

The allegations come at a time when the balance between pro-whaling countries and their anti-catch and conservationist critics is thought to be particularly tight, perhaps tilting control of the 66-nation body in favour of the pro-hunt lobby for the first time in more than 20 years.

"Dominica... is a country that has been threatened," delegate Lloyd Pascal told reporters in the former South Korean whaling port of Ulsan. "They think they can intimidate us.

"It's not only the NGOs (non-governmental organisations). Governments are sending their envoys to the Caribbean and intimidate our government to tell them that if you don't change your position you're going to risk how much aid... you get from us." 

He refused to name the governments that had allegedly made any threats or to disclose further details.

"The islands of the Caribbean have been under tremendous pressure from NGOs because they do not follow the dictates of their instructions at the IWC," he added.

Fisheries Minister Joanne Massiah of Antigua and Barbuda said only that those behind the threats were "governments of the developed world".

"The agenda and the emotive sentiment that are being expressed by the NGOs and the anti-whaling camp are colonialist in nature and patronising in the extreme," she told journalists.

"What we have seen is an effort to stymie our tourism product by a misinformation campaign," she alleged, saying that NGOs were leading the campaign.

She further warned that an impasse at the week-long meeting opening Monday could push pro-whaling nations to walk out of the body -- a threat that leading lobbyist Japan has repeatedly made.

"If the hardline agenda which is being pushed by the anti-whaling movement goes too far to the right, then this will only ensure and result in nations taking their own responsibility and making the IWC more and more irrelevant."

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