MONDAY, 10 APRIL 2006:
The South African Government has appointed Mr
Herman Oosthuizen of the Department of the Department
of Environmental Affairs and Tourism as Commissioner
to the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
The next meeting will take place from 8 - 21 June
this year.
Mr Oosthuizen has been studying
marine mammals for nearly 25 years and has attended
IWC meetings since 2000. He was Head of the Scientific
Delegation and Alternate Commissioner at IWC between
2000 and 2004, and acted as the IWC Commissioner
in 2005 at the annual IWC meeting in Korea. He
is highly regarded at the IWC and is an experienced
and skilled negotiator.
The International Whaling Commission
(IWC) was set up under the International Convention
for the Regulation of Whaling which was signed
in Washington DC on 2nd December 1946. The purpose
of the Convention is to provide for the proper
conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible
the orderly development of the whaling industry.
The main duty of the IWC is
to keep under review and revise as necessary the
measures laid down in the Schedule to the Convention
which govern the conduct of whaling throughout
the world. These measures, among other things,
provide for the complete protection of certain
species; designate specified areas as whale sanctuaries;
set limits on the numbers and size of whales which
may be taken; prescribe open and closed seasons
and areas for whaling; and prohibit the capture
of suckling calves and female whales accompanied
by calves. The compilation of catch reports and
other statistical and biological records is also
required.
In addition, the Commission
encourages, co-ordinates and funds whale research,
publishes the results of scientific research and
promotes studies into related matters such as
the humaneness of the killing operations.
